OMAHA, Neb. - It took five matches but freshman Madison Lambert (Bellevue, Neb.) exploded onto the scoresheet with a pair of goals, including the game-winner, to lead the Bellevue University women's soccer team to a 4-2 victory over MidAmerica Nazarene University in non-conference action on Tuesday night at Tranquility Park. With the victory, Bellevue is now 5-0-0 to begin the season for the first time since 2011 while MidAmerica Nazarene falls to 3-4-0 with the loss.
The game was a change from the previous two meetings which saw Bellevue post double-overtime victories in both 2010 (2-1) and 2011 (1-0). BU jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the opening 23 minutes before coasting to the victory, adding what turned out to be a pair of needed insurance goal in the 64th and 82nd minutes, respectively.
Over the course of the past few games, Bellevue has established a propensity for providing scoring opportunities on corner kicks and other set pieces, and sophomore Lauren Clark (Portsmouth, England) has been the main weapon. In a 2-0 victory over William Penn on Saturday Clark earned an assist when her corner met the head of junior Kate Petersen (Springfield, Neb.) but she proved even more lethal tonight. In the 16th minute she bent in a beautiful ball from the corner flag that took the entire Pioneer defense by surprise as BU jumped out to a 1-0 lead. This came on the heels of her just missing wide on her previous corner kick in the 12th minute.
In the 23rd minute, Bellevue doubled their advantage on Lambert's first collegiate goal. Senior Yaritza Estrada (Omaha, Neb.) played a ball under the MidAmerica Nazarene defender's feet that found Lambert in stride. Lambert would take one touch to settle the ball and deliver a superb arcing shot off her left foot over the hands keeper Lexi Gochnauer that snuck under the crossbar for a 2-0 Bruin lead.
MidAmerica Nazarene had a chance to get back into the game late in the first half but Kelli Reid's shot from 25 yards on a set piece curved right into the arms of freshman Bailey Petzoldt (Hastings, Neb.) who has made a habit of positioning herself very well in the early going of this season.
Senior Mercy Darkoah (Sheffield, England) couldn't capitalize on a golden opportunity in the 51st minute after the ball wound up at her feet on the edge of the 6-yard box following a defensive miscue. Her first attempt was stopped by a diving Gochnauer and she followed that up with a hard shot that caromed off the post and harmlessly over the end line for a Pioneer goal kick.
Lambert wasted no time in gaining her second goal. She took a long pass from freshman namesake Madison Stumpf (Cheyenne, Wyo.) near the edge of the 18-yard box and after a couple of touches beat the keeper to the nearside on the ground from 10 yards out for a 3-0 advantage.
The Pioneers finally got on the board in the 82nd minute when RaeAnn Wiltshire delivered a cross the made its way over all the Bellevue defenders and crossed the goal line. For Wiltshire, who had been dangerous on long shots throughout the match, it was her first goal of the season.
BU wasted no time in re-establish the three-goal cushion as Darkoah struck for the third time this season. A loose ball in the box landed at Estrada's feet and she crossed it to Darkoah, just as the keeper came out to try and make a play on the ball, who unleashed a hard shot into the back of the net for the third tally of the season.
Wiltshire would add another goal, her second of the match, in the 90th minute with a set piece from 25 yards out that she delivered perfectly in to the upper 90 to Petzoldt's right, but it wasn't enough.
Bellevue held an 11-10 advantage in shots and out-gained MidAmerica Nazarene in corner kicks by a 5-3 margin. Petzoldt made four saves in goal for the Bruins to improve her record to 5-0-0.
Bellevue will be back in action on Thursday when they travel to Davenport, Iowa to take on St. Ambrose University in a 1:00 p.m. non-conference tilt. BU will look try to move to 6-0. The only other time the Bruins have been unbeaten in their first six games of a season was during the 1997 campaign when they started 5-0-1 on their way to winning eight – and tying one – in their first nine games before suffering their first defeat.
