DE PERE, Wis. – The Alverno College soccer team returned to the competition field for the first time in nearly three years, traveling to De Pere, Wisconsin, and falling to St. Norbert 5-0. The Inferno put together a strong defensive effort in the first half, allowing just one goal and keeping the Green Knights off the scoreboard for much of the opening 45 minutes. St. Norbert eventually broke through with four goals in a 10-minute span in the second half to secure the victory.
Freshman
Priya Jackson (Waipahu, Hawaii/Moanalua) played over 56 minutes in between the posts in her collegiate debut, making eight saves while allowing just one goal to lead the defensive effort. Fellow freshman goalkeeper
Hannah Wester (Clintonville, Wis./Clintonville) played over 33 minutes in net, making five saves. Six Alverno players played the full 90 minutes in the season opener.
The Inferno fall to 0-1 on the season, while the Green Knights improve to 1-1. Alverno will have a day off on Thursday, Sept. 3, before traveling to Berrien Springs, Michigan, to take on Andrews University on Friday, Sept. 4, at 2 p.m. CDT / 3 p.m. EDT.
A strong defensive first half set the tone for Alverno in its return to competition, as the Inferno held St. Norbert to just one goal while making eight saves as a team. Jackson stopped the majority of those attempts, helping keep the Green Knights from extending their early lead. St. Norbert recorded 20 total shots in the first half, but the Inferno defense made clear looks at the net difficult to come by. Abby Names scored the first goal of the game in the 10th minute to give the Green Knights an early lead they would carry into halftime.
St. Norbert continued to bring strong pressure offensively in the second half, eventually finding more success on shots toward the net. Mya Gonzalez scored in the 57th and 61st minutes before Colleen Callaghan and Aleah Reesman added goals in the 63rd and 67th minutes, respectively, to push the lead to 5-0, where the score would hold until the final whistle.
Jackson was credited with the loss for the Inferno.
