By Rachael Cataldo, Asst. Sports Editor
The Susquehanna women’s soccer team recorded its seventh straight shutout and defeated the Penn College Wildcats 4–0 on Wednesday, Oct. 3 at Sassafras Field in Selinsgrove.
The River Hawks extended their winning streak to eight games. Susquehanna has not lost a game since Sept. 4, when they fell against Misericordia University in a nonconference game.
“It is a great feeling to have eight shutouts with our nine wins so far this season,” senior captain Kate Cantrell said. “Our defense has been extremely solid for us and it just shows how much potential this team has this season.”
The River Hawks (9–1–1, 2–0) started off the first half of the game strong with 12 corner kicks and 16 shots on goal, but the ball could not find the back of the net.
Susquehanna’s defense continued its season-long strength by only allowing one Wildcat shot on goal during the first half.
After halftime, the River Hawks continued with a few shots on goal before freshman forward Anna Werner scored on an assist by junior midfielder Alee Pettit to give Susquehanna a 1–0 lead. “Scoring my first collegiate goal was an awesome experience,” Werner said. “We as a team have had many chances to score and for me, finally scoring a goal was exciting and showed me that I could compete at the college level as a freshman.”
Susquehanna continued to dominate the game by putting up 21 shots in the second half. Sophomore midfielder Kathryn Perlowitz found the net in the 64th minute on an assist from freshman forward Samantha Chillis.
Chillis then scored a goal of her own in the 68th minute on an assist from sophomore midfielder Lanie Urbanski.
Freshman forward Caroline Lewis scored an unassisted goal in the 84th minute to cap off the 4–0 Susquehanna victory.
“Knowing that three freshmen scored made me feel like our team is so versatile and that everyone from each grade is contributing to our team’s success,” Chillis said.
Sophomore goalkeeper Madison Welliver had three saves on the day. Senior forward and team captain Emily Sullivan led the River Hawks with five shots on goal.
Susquehanna looks to extend their win streak when they take on the Catholic in a Landmark Conference matchup on Saturday, Oct. 6 in Selinsgrove.
“Saturday’s game against Catholic is a huge opportunity for this team to prove all the hard work we have been putting into this season so far, Cantrell said. “Catholic is one of our toughest competitors so it is going to be a very intense and critical game for us.”
“We’re looking forward to continue putting in the hard work and hopefully keep advancing through the conference,” Cantrell said.
“Our team’s success with shutouts will push us to maintain our defensive side of the game and hopefully through that we can keep progressing our offensive side for the rest of the season,”Chillis said.
Catholic and Susquehanna met twice during the 2017 season. During the first game, the River Hawks defeated the Cardinals 2–1. The River Hawks and the Cardinals’ second game ended in a 0–0 draw.
The Cardinals currently have a 6–3–2 overall record and a 1–1 record in the conference.
“It is really important for us as a team to focus on our own game and keep up the positive attitudes we bring to every practice and game,” Cantrell said.
“I think this team has a lot of confidence in our playing style and the successes that we’ve been having so far can be used to our advantage to keep allowing us to improve the rest of the season,” Cantrell said.
Game time for the conference matchup is 4 p.m.