TEANECK, N.J. – A second-half scoring surge powered the Fairleigh Dickinson women's soccer team to a 2-0 victory over LIU Brooklyn at University Stadium Friday evening.
The Knights (5-7-3, 3-1-1 NEC) earned their third-straight win in the process, picking up three important points in their pursuit of making the NEC Tournament for the sixth straight season. Sophomore
Viktorija Miseljic provided the first goal for FDU in the 65th minute, her team-leading fifth of the season, and senior
Elma Kolenovic added an insurance score in the 84th minute.
"It's huge to get these points," said head coach
Eric Teepe after the match. "Everything this point forward is about results. We worked all year, and you can have games where they don't go your way, but now you have to find a way to win every time you step out on the field. I think it was a well-deserved win. I think we really in both halves dominated play and created some good chances. We need to be a little better finishing, but I was pretty pleased with our effort. It was nice to even get the second goal to get some people a little bit of rest."
Both teams came out firing offensively in the opening minutes of the match, with each squad taking three shots in the first 10 minutes. Sophomore
Andrea Garcia struck FDU's first scoring opportunity that forced the LIU goalkeeper to make a play, and Kolenovic headed a corner that almost got past the line for an early goal before being swatted away by the keeper.
The Knights proceeded to take control of possession after the first 10 minutes, allowing the Blackbirds (2-10-3, 0-4-1 NEC) only one more scoring try in the half while taking four more shots of their own.
FDU peppered LIU goalkeeper Megan Virgin with three strikes on target in a span of three minutes to close the half, with a left-footed shot from junior
Jackson Bennett representing the closest the Knights came to gaining the lead.
The Burgundy and Blue continued to press offensively to start the second half and reaped the benefits in the 65th minute. An initial shot from junior
Stasi Torchia was batted by the goalie off the crossbar, and Miseljic ran in for a rebound shot that she nailed into the right corner, providing FDU the lead.
The Knight defense of senior
Julia Shea, junior
Samantha Roff and freshmen
Noam Kedem and
Christa Waterman held strong after the goal, not allowing the Blackbirds an equalizing opportunity for the remainder of the half.
Kolenovic scored the insurance goal after collecting a long pass from Shea and making her way into the box, firing a shot into the right corner and in for her second goal of the season. It also represented her 20th of her career, making her one of four Knights to reach the 20-goal mark in a career.
Junior goalkeeper
Amanda Fitzgerald saved four shots in the match, stopping two tries in each half. Fitzgerald finished the game with her second straight shutout (her fourth of the season) to increase her career total to 11.
For Miseljic, the goal was her 11th of her career, giving her 29 career points. She moves into the top 15 in FDU history in career points. This season, she leads the team with 12 points.
Kolenovic now has 54 career points, moving into third on FDU's all-time list.
The win for the Knights also moved them into a tie for second place in the NEC standings for at least one day, with second-place Saint Francis U (10 points) scheduled to play Saturday.
The Knights return to action Sunday, playing their final road match of the season Sunday at Wagner at 1 p.m.
