Box Score
SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio -- The defending 2014 Mountain East Conference women's soccer Champions returned to the pitch on Thursday afternoon for their 2015 season opener. The Falcons played host to the visiting Rock of Slippery Rock University and came away with a 2-1 win in a physical non-conference matchup.

On a hot, humid day at Mueller Field, the Falcons fell behind early to the Rock as Caitlin Binder netted a goal in the seventh minute to give the visitors the early 1-0 lead.

However, the Falcons proved resilient.

Battling the heat in chippy contest between both sides, the Falcons pushed the ball into SRU territory to create chances on offense. In the 19th minute, freshman Sarah Grossman netted her first collegiate goal as she fired a shot to the back of the net, tying the score at 1-1 just 18:37 into the game. 

As the first half went on, both sides continued to push and shove for the upper hand, trying to find a gap in the opposing defense. After a 1-1 stalemate throughout the middle of the first half, the Falcons again responded with offensive chances.

Just over 36 minutes into to the game, head coach Mike Shiels made a key substitution, inserting Sabrina Mottershead into the game. Less than 30 seconds later, the substitution reaped rewards as Mottershead ripped a shot from the right side of the field, finding the back of the net and giving NDC a 2-1 lead in the 37th minute of the game.

The score remained 2-1 at halftime in favor of the Falcons, and both sides brought that same physical energy into the second half. 

Less than two minutes into the second half, a lightning delay suspended the game for roughly 45 minutes. Fortunately, the delay was only temporary and both sides returned to action.

The second half continued to be a back-and-forth battle, and while the Rock maintained ball posession at times, they failed to captialize as goalkeeper Louisa Rygh and the Falcons defense continued to stand tall.

From there on out, the NDC defense cleared offensive chances in their own zone, and the Falcons held on for an impressive 2-1 win over Slippery Rock in their 2015 season opener.

With the win, the Falcons improve to 1-0 on the season. NDC will return to action on Saturday, Sept. 5 on the road at Edinboro University. The game is scheduled for a 1 p.m. start.