HUNTSVILLE, Ala. - Locked in a scoreless battle until midway through the second half, Northwest finally broke a scoreless deadlock in the 65th minute, as the top-seeded Lady Rangers held off eighth-ranked Scottsdale in a 2-1 final on Sunday morning.
With the win, Northwest moved to 19-0 on the season. The Lady Rangers will look to advance out of Pool A on Tuesday morning against 12th-seed St. Charles (Mo.).
Much like they have done all season, the Lady Rangers spent the first half on the offensive, firing off opportunity after opportunity. However, the Fighting Artichokes managed to lock down defensively, keeping Northwest off the scoreboard through the duration of the opening half.
Northwest continued to battle against the Scottsdale defense early in the second half, and in the 65th minute, the Lady Rangers finally broke the ice.
Penny Warner netted her 24th career goal, thanks to an assist from
Mari Julia Delgado, pushing Northwest to a 1-0 advantage.
In the 79th minute,
Emma Jensen widened the gap with her 20th goal of the season, thanks to a double assist from Warner and
Tabitha McMackin. The 2-0 lead was short-lived however, as Scottsdale immediately responded with a goal by Shayla Hunt in the same minute, closing the gap to 2-1.
Despite the surprise score from the Fighting Artichokes, Northwest tightened up over the final 10 minutes of regulation, keeping Scottsdale from forcing a draw.
Northwest finished with 16 total shots, with half of those coming on-goal. Scottsdale was limited to just three shots over the span of the match, but each one resulted in a shot-on-goal.
Scottsdale was whistled for 11 fouls, while the Lady Rangers were hit with three.
Caroline Chandler was issued a caution in the 67th minute, while Cora Still and Kaslee Roskelley were handed yellow cards in the 15th and 88th minutes, respectively.
Anna Kathryn Harrell improved her season record to 17-0-0, logging two saves in a full 90-minute sheet. Kaydence Manning was credited with five saves for the Fighting Artichokes, spending a full 90 minutes between the posts.
Kickoff for Tuesday's match against St. Charles is slated for 10 A.M. on the NJCAA Network. With a win, Northwest would advance to the semifinals against the lowest remaining seed.
