The Belles notched two close victories this weekend, against conference opponent Kalamazoo on Saturday and Rochester on Sunday.
Saint Mary's (7-2-1, 4-2 MIAA) was tied with Kalamazoo (6-4-0, 4-3 MIAA) for the majority of their matchup Saturday, with only two major attempts on goal until junior midfielder Mollie Valencia scored her second game-winning goal in less than a week with only 2:30 remaining in regulation. The victory was the first over Kalamazoo for the Belles since the 2007 season.
The Belles kept their winning attitude Sunday when they took on Rochester (1-11-1), their first non-conference opponent since Sept. 4. The match was tied at 2-2 at the end of regulation. Saint Mary's battled through nearly two full overtimes before junior forward Jordan Diffenderfer scored the winning goal in the final 20 seconds.
Saint Mary's pulled ahead early when sophomore defender Mary Kate Hussey shot her first goal of her college career in the first 10 minutes of play. The score reached 2-0 early in the second half with a shot from junior forward Kaitlin Teichman. Rochester responded quickly, however, and with two goals in two minutes, the Warriors tied the match 2-2.
The victory in goal was spread between three different sophomore goalkeepers. Hannah Bruggeman kept the Warriors scoreless in the first half. Nicole Papiernik kept the Belles in the contest despite letting two goals past her in the second half and ChanlerRosenbaum closed out the game, allowing no shots past her during both overtimes.
The Belles will continue their long stretch of games when they take on Trine at home Wednesday at 4 p.m.
Contact Katie Heit at kheit@nd.edu
