Opening their season with three games on three consecutive
days was no easy task, but the Lady Pioneers came through with solid
performances and went 2-1 over the weekend. The Ladies’ season opened with a stiff test at a revitalized
Lakeland College on Thursday. As expected, both teams struggled to
find their form early in the game but were able to settle in as the game went
along. Although several chances arose for both teams, the score remained knotted at zero until
the thirty-fifth minute when Lindsay Rogers played a nice diagonal
ball into the goal, scoring the game’s first point. Despite a stiff wind in their faces,
the Lady Pioneers continued to battle all through the second half and finally
pulled even in the eighty-fifth minute when freshman Heather Thompson
collected a loose ball, dribbled past the goal keeper, and slotted home her first
collegiate goal. Two minutes later, the officials called Northland for a handball inside the box.
Lakeland's Krystina Borts narrowly put away the goal as Northland keeper Jo Paine’s diving
effort came up short. But Northland was resilient and continued to push the
ball forward hoping to force overtime. Their efforts were rewarded with less
than a minute to play when Nicole Wung drew a foul in the box and Northland was
awarded the game’s second penalty kick in the final three minutes. Heather
Thompson netted her second goal as she tucked the ball into the lower left-hand corner, sending the game into overtime. Lakeland, however, scored just
two minutes into the first overtime frame as Lindsay Rogers nailed home her
second goal of the match from 23 yards out. Northland had little time to
recover from this overtime game, as they were to play Faith Baptist Bible College the very
next day at home.
Fresh off an intense overtime loss, the Lady Pioneers
geared up for their second match of the season. They showed no signs
of fatigue, however, as sophomore Kate Matthai notched her first goal of the
season in the third minute, clipping the ball over the keeper to
the far post. Heather Thompson continued her hot start to the season as she
collected her third goal of the season in the twenty-fifth minute to push
the lead to 2-0. Transfer Jami Beiler also added her first goal in the thirty-third
minute of the first half . Junior Nicole Wung contributed to the first half scoring in the forty-first
minute by calmly tucking the ball into the side netting.
Faith responded in the fifty-ninth minute,
collecting a loose ball and opportunistically scoring their first and only goal
of the game. Freshman Krysti St. Amand finished off the scoring for
Northland in the seventy-fifth minute, giving the Lady Pioneers a 5-1 victory.
Northland’s final test came the next day against Robert Morris
University, again at home.
An exhausted yet determined Northland took the field on
Saturday looking to improve to 2-1 on the season.
Battling fatigue and light injuries as well as a tight Robert Morris defense, the Pioneers pushed through the opening
minutes and created several chances to score, including two hits to the post. Heather Thompson continued her
good form and pounded home the game’s opening goal in the forty-third minute, giving Northland a 1-0
halftime advantage. Thompson did not take long to find the net in the
second half as she put away her second goal in the forty-eighth minute. Nicole Wung and Kristy Maholic
each tacked on a goal late in the game to give the Pioneers a solid 4-0
win. Jo Paine collected the shutout in the net for Northland.
Northland has a short
rest before their big match against Maranatha at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday. The Lady
Pioneers will be looking to collect only their second win against Maranatha in
the last six seasons.