No. 23 USAO Opens 2023 Season in Epic Fashion
CHICKASHA, Okla. – On Saturday morning, the No. 23 ranked University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma (1-0, 0-0 SAC) opened the Niall Crick era in tremendous fashion, with an impressive 6-1 victory in the regular season opener against Louisiana State University Alexandria (0-1, 0-0 RRAC). With the temperatures reaching over 100 degrees during the contest, the Drovers endured the heat and scored early and often to defeat the Generals.
After the contest opened with 16 scoreless minutes of action, the Drover offense quickly began to strike, scoring their first goal in the 17th minute, followed by another goal only two minutes later. Daniela Salinas got the scoring started with her first goal in the green and gold, coming off an assist from Alicia Rey. Rey quickly went on to score her first goal of the season off an assist from Avery Walker.
In the 39th minute, USAO stretched the lead to 3-0 on Alicia Rey's second goal of the day, coming off an assist from Avery Walker once again.
Following halftime, the Drovers quickly extended the lead to 4-0 in the 48th minute, with Avery Walker scoring off an assist from Alicia Rey.
LSUA managed to score their only goal of the game in the 54th minute, but USAO immediately responded with a goal in the 55th minute, coming off the foot of Dagbjort Gudmunsdottir and was assisted by Walker and Rey.
11 minutes later, Gudmunsdottir scored her second of the game, pushing USAO's lead to 6-1 for the remainder of the contest.
At the conclusion of the match, the Drovers had attempted 18 shots, 12 of which went on goal, while LSUA attempted 12 shots and put six on target.
Caitlin Bishop got the start between the pipes for the Drovers and she stopped four of the five shot that she faced in 72 minutes of action. Ashlyn Lonberg was the netminder for the final 18 minutes of the game and made one save.
The 2022 SAC Offensive Player of the Year looked primed to repeat as the conference's top offensive player, as Alicia Rey opened the 2023 season with two goals and three assists in the win.
Dagbjort Gudmunsdottir opened her USAO career with a pair of goals, and Avery Walker concluded with one goal and a trio of assists.
WHAT'S NEXT?
The No. 23 ranked Drovers will now hit the road for a top 25 showdown at No. 25 ranked MidAmerica Nazarene University on Tuesday, August 22. Kick-off is scheduled for 3:00 PM CT in Olathe, Kan.
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