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The Peacocks opened the Northern Sun Conference schedule with a split against the University of Mary and Northern State University. In their first match Upper Iowa defeated Mary 1-0, earning the ladies their first NSIC win. Erica Baedke scored the game winner unassisted in the 10th minute. Sarah Hiatt recorded her second shutout in a row. The preseason polls ranked Mary as the 5th best team in the conference while Upper Iowa was ranked 7th.
Coach Chad Leonard said, “I was pleased with the overall team effort. We beat a very good team today. Our defense, especially Sarah Hiatt, was great for the second game in a row. We are now at 200 minutes and counting without allowing a goal.” The superior defense continued throughout the first half of the second game of the weekend as Upper Iowa and Northern State went to the break tied at 0-0. The Wolves finally broke through the Peacocks’ defense 2 minutes into the second half, but Upper Iowa found the back of the net 2 minutes later to tie the game on a throw in by Jennifer Lee that was headed in by Jennifer Burnett. Northern State found the net again in the 69th minute and a Peacock own goal in the 79th minute closed Upper Iowa out. Northern State was ranked as the 2nd best NSIC team in the preseason polls. After the match, Coach Leonard stated, “It was a positive weekend for this team. To earn a split on the NSIC opening weekend is a good result, especially against two quality teams on the road. Our defense and our goalie, Sarah Hiatt, put together a stretch of 247 minutes without allowing a goal. The ladies played with an aggressive attitude all weekend and that’s what we need to do every time out. We are looking forward to our non-conference weekend to correct mistakes and move forward toward the rest of our conference schedule.” Upper Iowa returns to action this Friday, the 22nd, at Oakland City University and this Saturday, the 23rd, at Robert Morris College. Upper Iowa's record is 2-5-1 overall and 1-1 in the Northern Sun. |
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