Alissa Carlson
3
Winner Northwestern Okla. NWO (1-0-0, 0-0-0)
0
Okla. Christian OCU (0-1-0, 0-0-0)
Winner
Northwestern Okla. NWO
(1-0-0, 0-0-0)
3
Final
0
Okla. Christian OCU
(0-1-0, 0-0-0)
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Northwestern Okla. NWO 1 2 3
Okla. Christian OCU 0 0 0

Game Recap: Women's Soccer | | Andrew Santangelo, Athletic Communications

Northwestern blanks Oklahoma Christian 3-0 in opener

EDMOND, Okla. – Northwestern Oklahoma State soccer opened the season with a 3-0 victory over Oklahoma Christian University. This is the first time Ranger soccer started the season 1-0 since 2011.

"Obviously it's great to start the season 1-0," head coach Erik Solberg stated. "It's what every team wants to do and tonight we put it together enough for 90 minutes to come out on top. The fact that it hasn't happened in a while is special, and shows the potential our team has.

Ranger soccer was ready to start the season getting five of the first six shots of the game; including the first goal. After OC's defender Maria Chilto committed a foul, Rangers forward Alissa Carlson capitalized on a penalty kick giving the Rangers a 1-0 lead.

Northwestern would never look back keeping the game to their pace throughout the game. Solberg was asked about momentum in this game "I think we started on the front foot tonight and controlled the game in different stretches, so there wasn't maybe a singular moment where we grabbed momentum. We had plenty of chances to score in the early going and eventually We were rewarded with the penalty kick and that really gave us confidence at the half. Eventually we capitalized in transition and nabbed a second goal which helped us put the game to bed and then finished it off with a third through good, solid, build up play."

After trading shots to start the half. Whitney Blanchard, assisted by Alyssa Nunez, opened a 2-0 lead scoring in the 76th minute of the game.
Alissa Carlson would put the final touches on the game with her second goal of the night, this one assisted by Yazmin Gomez creating a 3-0 lead in the 84th minute of the game.

This victory was coach Solberg's first victory here at Northwestern and first career Division II win.

 "I'm thrilled to get my first win as a Ranger. There was a lot of preparation, energy, time and effort that went into tonight's result, so I'm overjoyed to come through with the victory, especially on the road. Northwestern is a special place and I'm so thankful for the support of Ranger nation and the fact that tonight was my first division II win as a head coach is also sweet and special. Definitely a night to remember."

Reyna Gonzalez started in goal for Northwestern while completing the shutout after stopping all three saves she faced through the game.

Northwestern will return to game action on Saturday, Sept. 7th as they travel to Tahlequah Okla., to face Northeastern State University. Coach Solberg talked about getting ready for Saturday after the win "We don't have a ton of time to savor tonight, we have to get back to training tomorrow and prepare for a very good, well coached Northeastern team on Saturday. It will be another very tough challenge on the road, so we need to recover well, then go over our scouting report and talk about areas from tonight we can learn and grow from and improve upon. We are excited for the next challenge and that we can take another step forward in the process of building this program into a championship contender."

Kickoff will start at 7 p.m. Saturday night. First home game will be Monday Sept. 9th.

For the latest news and updates on NWOSU Soccer, follow @NWOSUAthletics on TWITTER or visit www.riderangersride.com.
 
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