SENATOBIA - Year three of the
James Beattie era started off unlike any other.
Northwest dominated its season-opening contest against National Park College from start to finish, defeating the Lady Nighthawks 13-0. The 13th-ranked Lady Rangers took an unheard-of total of 51 shots in the match, with 35 coming on-goal. Northwest also scored the most goals of any other match in Beattie's tenure and racked up the most goals in a single contest since September 26, 2006, when the Lady Rangers upended Southwest Mississippi by a 16-0 final.
Less than two minutes into the match, freshman
Evie Crawford opened the plethora of goals off a pair of assists from
Jadyn Duran and
Avery Hooker. In the seventh minute, Duran got her turn at the net, scoring off an assist from
Dani Rodriguez, quickly pushing the Lady Rangers to a 2-0 lead.
Northwest was far from finished in the first half, as Crawford connected with
Jennifer Enriquez for a goal in the 13th minute. After a near 16-minute scoring drought, freshman
Raylin Dixon got more points on the board, earning her first collegiate goal off an assist from
Amaya Andrews in the 29th minute.
With a convincing 4-0 lead, the Lady Rangers kept going. Crawford connected on her second goal of the match, thanks to a feed from
Eliza Olive in the 31st minute, followed by two quick goals from
Caroline King and
Malaesha Liddell, sending Northwest to the break with a 7-0 advantage against National Park College.
Northwest kept things rolling in the second half, as
Melinda Hernandez nabbed her first goal of the season less than a minute in. Later, Crawford secured the hat trick with her third goal, an unassisted shot that came in the 52nd minute.
With the lead at 9-0 early in the second half, the Lady Rangers emptied the bench. However, the scoring was far from finished, as Hooker earned her first career score off a double assist from Crawford and Rodriguez in the 53rd minute. In the 57th minute,
Madyson Helm connected on her first college goal, thanks to an assist from
Caroline King.
Leading 11-0, Northwest closed out the match with a goal from
Kaley Harden in the 70th minute, fed by an assist from
Grace Sanders.
Caroline Wages would then cap things off with her first collegiate goal, thanks to an assist from Helm.
Crawford, a Tupelo native, collected three goals and two assists in an impressive freshman debut. She also took a team-leading eight shots, with five of those on-goal. Duran and Hernandez also took four shots apiece, all on target, and Enriquez continued to shine with a goal and two assists, pulling further away in the history books as the program's all-time assists leader.
Addy McCann and
Amelia Anding split time at goalkeeper, with McCann earning the shutout. Anding did come away with two saves on the only two shots from the Lady Nighthawks.
Northwest (1-0) now turns its attention to Tuesday's matinee match at Southwest Tennessee. Start time is scheduled for 1 P.M. and coverage details are still pending.
