Roberts, Gulbrandsen Propel Women's Soccer to 1-0 League Win over SCSU
Women's Soccer Holds Off Southern CT 1-0
Links: Box Score | Meghan Gulbrandsen Interview | Gabe Mejail Interview
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The Merrimack College women's soccer team defeats Southern Connecticut State University 1-0 in the Northeast-10 opener for both squads. Junior goalkeeper Meghan Gulbrandsen (Haverhill, Mass.) notches seven saves to record her first career clean sheet.
The Basics
Score: Merrimack 1 | Southern CT 0
Records: Merrimack (3-0, 1-0 NE-10) | Southern CT (1-2, 0-1 NE-10)
Location: Martone-Mejail Field | North Andover, Mass.
How It Happened
The Warriors opened conference play with a balanced attack against Southern Connecticut. The Owls challenged the Merrimack backline throughout the game, but Gulbrandsen stood tall for the Warriors.
In the first half the Owls outshot the Warriors 6-4 including ringing one off of the crossbar in the 41st minute.
In the second half the Navy and Gold broke through. Junior Deirdre Roberts (Braintree, Mass.) scored her first career goal, which was the eventual game-winner. Freshman Sarah Boucher (Northbridge, Mass.) flicked a pass into the box where Jenna Savi (Dedham, Mass.) shot it on net, deflecting off of the Owls keeper and onto the foot of Roberts.
The star of the remainder of the game was Gulbrandsen. The junior made five second-half saves including multiple sprawling efforts to keep Southern CT off of the scoreboard.
The victory marks the first NE-10 win of the season for the Warriors.
Inside The Numbers
- Junior Heather Hastbacka (Weston, Mass.) made her first appearance of the season after missing the first two games due to injury. She record one shot and took the majority of the free kicks for Merrimack.
- It took Roberts 34 games to tally her first career goal. The junior captain recorded her first career assist in the season opener against Dowling College.
- The Owls did have the majority of the possession, even in a losing effort. Southern CT edged Merrimack in shots 15-9 and in corners 10-3.
- In addition to picking up her third assist in three games, Savi led the Warriors with three shots.
Up Next
The Warriors continue NE-10 play on Wednesday night at home against Franklin Pierce University. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
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