Boxscore

HATTIESBURG, Miss. – The sixth-ranked Embry-Riddle women's soccer team opened its two-game road trip with a decisive 4-0 defeat of Auburn Montgomery (2-1), Friday evening at the William Carey Soccer Complex. Senior Martine Olsen recorded her first hat trick of the season and the fourth of her career to help the Eagles improve their record to 2-1-1.

"We challenged our team today in preparation for this game to respond after having a lackluster performance against Mobile," ERAU Head Coach Samantha Bohon said. "We knew AUM would be a talented team because some of our players know some of their team. We certainly had a lot of respect for them and we're really excited to get the result and keep a clean sheet. This year's schedule has no easy games, so we'll turn our attention to preparing for the defending national champions, Lindsey Wilson, on Sunday."

ERAU dominated the possession and the offense from the outset. The Eagles registered the first two shots of the contest and their third attempt led to their first goal of the evening in the sixth minute.

Less than a minute after Valerie Obita's shot just missed the mark, Tova Torstensson played a pass through the heart of the AUM defense to Olsen who pushed a shot past AUM net minder Holly Clarke after which it bounced off the post and over the goal line for a 1-0 Eagle advantage.

Although they had the better of the run of play, including a 12-2 advantage in shots, the Eagles were unable to add to their tally and held on to the one-goal advantage at the half.

The Lady Warhawks picked up their offensive intensity to start the second half. At the 49:51 mark, AUM won a corner kick and Nicole Letford's cross found the head of Marin Heller who directed a shot on goal, but ERAU goalkeeper Olivia Lynch was up to the challenge and snagged the save to keep the Lady Warhawks off the board.

Immediately following that play, the Eagles raced up the field on the counterattack. Kristin Sverrisdottir pulled down Lynch's goal kick spun quickly and got a short pass to Obita. Obita spun and with a quick touch, slipped the ball through her defender's legs, which allowed her to take the ball down the right side. Obita then completed a cross to Olsen who slid in to notch her third goal of the year to put the Blue and Gold up 2-0.

In the 84^th minute, Obita used her pace to get into scoring position. She rocketed a shot from the right side that substitute keeper Chloe Crook got a touch to but couldn't hold on to the ball and the rebound fell to Isabelle Haaranen who put away her fourth shot of the game to make the score 3-0.

Obita was also involved in the Eagles' third goal as another shot attempt was too much for Crook to handle. This time it was Olsen who put back the rebound to seal the 4-0 win.

Sophomore goalkeeper Olivia Lynch went the distance for the Eagles, collecting five saves on the way to her second shutout of the year. Her AUM counterparts, Holly Clarke and Crook, each went 45 minutes and combined for eight saves in the loss.

The Eagles' will travel from Hattiesburg to Orange Beach, Ala. for a Sunday fixture against defending national champion Lindsey Wilson. Kick-off is slated for noon (CST).