LYNDHURST, Ohio -- Notre Dame defeated Point Park (Pa.), 4-0, in a steady rain Monday at Korb Field. Senior midfielder Nikki Tizzano (Sr./Mentor, Ohio) had a goal and an assist, as the No. 19 Falcons won their 10th conference match of the season in a match shortened by inclement weather.
The win was NDC's second straight and sixth in their last seven contests. It also ties Notre Dame with Houghton (N.Y.) for first place in the American Mideast Conference (AMC). Each team has one AMC contest remaining (both to be played on Saturday), and NDC has the tie-breaker by right of a 1-0 Falcon win in a head-to-head match-up.
The match was stopped in the 74th minute after lightening delays and rain and hail.
Senior forward Natalie Bernot (Mentor, Ohio) got the Falcons going in the 23rd minute of the match, with a 35-yard bullet into the lower left corner of the PPU net.
Sophomore forward Ashley Rucker (Rocky River, Ohio) gave Notre Dame a 2-0 lead at 30:52, when she corralled a rebound off a Nikki Tizzano shot. The Falcons would take that lead into halftime, out-shooting the Pioneers, 8-3.
In the second half, NDC upped the score to 3-0 at 57:13, when Falcon pressure near the Pioneer goal forced PPU to kick the ball into its own net.
In the 64th minute, Tizzano banged a 23-yarder into the upper left corner of the Pioneer net. That closed out the scoring, at 4-0.
Emilie Lamarche (Rockland, Ont.) made one save in goal for the Falcons. She was relieved in the 64th minute by Brittany Cruz (Fr./Amherst, Ohio), who also made a save in what was NDC's 10th shutout of the season.
Defenders Lauren Acker (Fr./Westlake, Ohio) and Jessica Skoein (Sr./Rowland Heights, Calif.) quarterbacked a Falcon defense that allowed just five shots and two shots on goal in the match. Notre Dame has now allowed just eight shots over their last two matches, and the Falcons have gone five straight contests without allowing shot totals in double digits.
With the loss, Point Park has now dropped three straight. The Pioneers are also winless (0-8-1) over their last nine. In their all-time series with Notre Dame, they are 0-7, with the Falcons outscoring them, 25-1.
The Falcons will close out their regular season Saturday when they visit Shawnee State. Kickoff in Portmouth is scheduled for 1 p.m.
NOTES FROM THE NEST…
SENIOR SEND-OFF: Notre Dame's three senior players (Natalie Bernot, Jessica Skoien, and Nikki Tizzano) were honored during Monday's match as part of the program's senior day. Bernot and Tizzano have each been with NDC each of the past two seasons. Skoien is a four-year Falcon, who has been with the program as it's gone from five wins in 2005 to 13 last year and to a possible league title in 2008.
LONG NIGHT: Monday's game was played through heavy rains and spells of hail. The match was also twice delayed by area lightening. Two delays totalled 56 minutes, and the game, which kicked off at 4:12 p.m., did not end until 6:35, despite being called with nearly 20 minutes remaining.
