Match Report

MILWAUKEE, Wis. (Aug. 14, 2011) - Sarah Hagen scored two goals and assisted on a third in a 2:15 span to send the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women's soccer team to a 4-1 win over Northern Illinois Sunday afternoon at Engelmann Stadium.

Hagen scored goals at 7:41 and 9:33 in the opening minutes, then assisted on a Helen Steinhauser score just 21 seconds later to stake the Panthers to a 3-0 lead in their exhibition finale.

For Milwaukee, the offense dictated play through much of the game, while the defense did its part. UWM outshot the Huskies, 26-7, including by a 14-3 margin in the first half, and had a 9-2 advantage in corner kicks.

"I'm very pleased with the way the whole preseason has gone thus far," UWM head coach Michael Moynihan said. "Three goals in 10 minutes is outstanding. Obviously Sarah was a big factor in those, but I thought, in general, we came out with good energy and put them under pressure with good ball movement. It all came together pretty well. It gets tougher as the season starts and this is one more step in getting ready for it. I'm feeling pretty good about it."

The first goal came off a through ball past the defense from Kelsey Holbert. Hagen ran onto the ball, dribbled in on the keeper and finished inside the box. Moments later, Steinhauser put a corner kick into the middle of the box that Hagen headed to her feet, before depositing it in the goal.

Before the clock hit 10 minutes, Hagen and Steinhauser hooked up on another goal. This time it was Hagen playing a ball through to Steinhauser.

Keara Thompson capped the Panthers' scoring just unassisted in the 45th minute. Her score gave Milwaukee a 4-0 lead heading into halftime and enabled every healthy player to appear in the second half.

"We have made a lot of progress in a short time," Moynihan said. "I feel like the defensive organization has come around very well and been very solid. Through the run of play, the defensive organization limited any chances today. For this stage in the season, we'll find out a lot more against Michigan State, a very good attacking team. We are definitely heading in the right direction.

Northern Illinois scored its goal off a corner kick in the 65th minute. Shelbi Johnson played the corner to the center of the box, where Corinne Frankenburg was to head the ball into the goal. Frankenburg led NIU with three shots in the game.

Natalie Fettinger got the start in goal for Milwaukee, playing nearly 79 minutes. Erin Sullivan played the final 11-plus minutes and made one save to preserve the win. Northern Illinois played three keepers, with Meaghan Bennett playing the first half and making four saves. Amy Carr also made four saves, playing the final 22 minutes of the contest.

The Panthers finished the exhibition season 3-0 after a 5-1 win over a team of Milwaukee alumni on Saturday. They open the 2011 regular season Friday (Aug. 19) at Michigan State.