LYNDHURST, Ohio – The American Mideast Conference (AMC) race will come down the final week after Notre Dame (10-3-1, 9-1-1 AMC) had little trouble with Rio Grande (3-13-2, 1-10-2 AMC) Saturday at Korb Field, beating the Red Storm, 4-0. The win helps the Falcons keep pace in the race for the AMC automatic berth in the NAIA National Tournament.
Freshman midfielder Anic McKay (Orleans, Ont.) started off the scoring at the 1:52 mark of the first half, converting the Falcons' first shot of the game. She received a through ball from senior forward Natalie Bernot (Mentor, Ohio) and snuck her shot past the goalkeeper from 10 yards out.
Notre Dame tallied their second goal of the half on sophomore forward Ashley Rucker's (Rocky River, Ohio) ninth goal of the season. Rucker was in the right place at the right time as junior midfielder Jessica Mazzorato (London, Ont.) had her cross go through the keeper's hands. Rucker neatly finished the ball at the back post at the 18:31 mark.
At the half, the Falcons held a commanding lead in shots (20-1), and showed no signs of letting up in the second half. NDC picked up two additional goals on 18 more shots after the half.
Mazzorato picked up her fourth goal of the season, cleaning up a rebound at the top of the six yard box. The ball took several bounces off several players before Mazzorato put it in the back of the net.
The Falcons finished off URG for good at the 61:23 mark, on a goal by senior defender Jessica Skoien (Rowland Heights, Calif.). McKay picked up the assist on what was Skoien's second goal of the season.
As the Falcon offense was continually peppering the Rio Grande goal, the NDC defense stymied the opposition from mounting any serious attacks. The Red Storm was limited to three shots for the match.
Goalkeepers Emilie Lamarche (So./Rockland, Ont.) and Brittany Cruz (Fr./Amherst, Ohio) combined for the shutout with help from their defenders. Each netminder played 45 minutes, with Lamarche playing the first half. Leading the defense were Skoien, junior Breanne Hunter (London, Ont.), freshman Monica Lonneman (Cold Spring, Ky.), and freshman Lauren Acker (Westlake, Ohio).
“We showed today that we are a very good defensive team,” said head coach Mike Shiels. “We got great play out of our midfield, and good movement out of our forwards, so this was a total team win.”
The Falcons now have a quick turnaround, as they host Point Park (Pa.) on Monday at Korb Field. Game time is set for 4:00 p.m.
NEWS FROM THE NEST…
SUFFOCATING DEFENSE: Today's result was Notre Dame's ninth shutout on the season. They are now two away from their program record of 11 a year ago. … Emilie Lamarche leads AMC goalkeepers with six shutouts.
THE HEAT IS ON: The AMC race comes down to the final week for four contenders. NDC has two games remaining (Point Park and Shawnee State), Ohio Dominican has two remaining (Carlow-Pa. and Daemen-N.Y.), and Houghton (N.Y.) and Roberts Wesleyan (N.Y.) each have one game remaining, both facing Cedarville. … This season the Falcons are 1-1-1 in head-to head matches against the other contenders.
