SENATOBIA - Two early goals from freshman
Emma Jensen paved the way for a hat trick and a 5-1 victory for top-ranked Northwest, as the Lady Rangers defeated No. 20 Itawamba on Tuesday evening.
Jensen provided the first goal of the match in the 13th minute, before
Amiyah Baker assisted her second goal in the 15th minute. Despite darting out a 2-0 lead, a penalty kick set up an answer from Itawamba, as Millie Webb closed the gap to 2-1 in the 16th minute.
From there, the Lady Indians' defense clamped down for the remainder of the first half, minimizing shot opportunities for Northwest. However, it didn't take long for the Lady Rangers to break through early in the second half, as
Raegan Tucker connected with
Mari Julia Delgado in the 52nd minute, pushing the lead to a 3-1 margin.
In the 67th minute, Jensen completed her first collegiate hat trick, as the Gammelby, Germany native scored off a free kick to push the Northwest lead to 4-1.
Penny Warner capped off the scoring in the 79th minute, netting her seventh goal of the season off an assist by
Molly Thompson. It marked the 20th career goal for Warner, placing her 10th in the program's scoring record books.
Northwest finished with a 29-2 margin in total shots, with 17 shots coming in the second half. The Lady Rangers finished with 18 shots on-goal, while Itawamba was limited to a pair of first half shots.
Fouls and offsides infractions plagued Northwest early in the match, but the Lady Rangers lowered their foul count from nine to four in the second half. Northwest was also called offsides six times in the first half, but only once in the second half.
Annabelle Holman recorded 13 saves in a full 90-minute effort for Itawamba, while
Anna Kathryn Harrell allowed one goal with a save, improving to 10-0 on the season.
With the win, Northwest improved to 11-0 overall and 6-0 in the MACCC, as the Lady Indians dropped to 8-2-1 on the season and 3-2-1 in conference play.
Next up for the Lady Rangers is a road clash at No. 4 Holmes on Friday, October 11 at 1 P.M. The Lady Bulldogs have won six of their last seven matches, and are coming off a 7-0 victory against East Central.
No live stream will be provided.
