COBLESKILL, N.Y. — Four goals in the first half gave the Southern Vermont College women's soccer team a comfortable cushion that it would carry to a 7-1 non-conference win at SUNY Cobleskill Saturday afternoon.
Three Mountaineers (3-2) each scored a pair of goals on the day, two coming in a 30 second stretch of the first half to give SVC a lead it would not relinquish. Freshman Molly Madore (Higganum, Conn.) led all players with five points, adding her second assist of the season to her first two collegiate goals. Junior Lauren Nesshoever (Chittenden, Vt.) also netted two, including what proved to be the game-winner, while classmate Melodie Orrell (Gloucester, Mass.) scored a pair of late-game insurance goals for her first two of the year.
Southern Vermont freshman Erica Nichols (Stillwater, N.Y.) added her first collegiate tally in the opening half before notching her first assist later on with a helper to Orrell. SVC sophomore keeper Melissa Mascari (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.) made three saves while allowing just the lone goal to improve her season record to 3-2 and maintain an even 1.0 goals against average.
The victory sets the all-time series record between the two teams at 4-4, SVC now having won the last four straight meetings.
The Mountaineers are back at home on Tuesday in an attempt to win their third straight game, hosting The Sage Colleges for a 4 p.m. start.
Play was scoreless through the opening 15 minutes before Southern Vermont got on the board first. Madore got her foot on a loose ball in the box and put it into the back of the net for the early upper hand. Nesshoever extended the lead just 29 seconds later, beating the Cobleskill (0-3) keeper on a breakaway down the field.
The Fighting Tigers cut the deficit in half just over a minute after, but Nesshoever was able to use her speed and score on another break at net, making it 3-1 with her third of the year just 22:03 into the game. The Mountaineers added another shortly after when Madore found Nichols on a through ball into the box, the freshman duo combining to put their team ahead by three going into the break.
5:33 into the second half, Southern Vermont added to its lead as Madore finished on a ball into the box from classmate Sofi Sorriento (Troy, N.Y.) for her second of the day. Orrell would then put the game away with her second goal coming just 50 seconds after her first in the 63rd minute.
SVC finished with a 24-4 advantage in shots on goal, taking 34 total compared to Cobleskill's 10.