On Saturday (Oct. 19) night at Ferguson Field, the No. 4-ranked Ashland University women's soccer team took a 5-1 decision from Ohio Dominican in a Great Midwest Athletic Conference contest.
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The Eagles improve to 11-1-1 overall and stay alone atop the league table at 8-0-1, while the Panthers are 4-4-5, 4-2-4. Ashland is 7-0-1 in the last eight games in the series.
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"We talked about the four-year experience with these seniors, and getting back to us and doing what they've done for four years," said Ashland head coach
Cayleb Paulino. "I thought we played really well."
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Appropriately on Senior Night, senior forward
McKinley Mendenhall scored in the 16
th minute on a scrum in front of the Panthers net following a restart. The unassisted tally is her sixth of 2024.
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Another mixer in front of the ODU net resulted in another unassisted goal, this one in the 22
nd minute scored by junior forward
Dani Hicks, her team-leading 10
th of the fall and 28
th of her Eagle career – now alone in eighth place in program history.
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Then, in the 30
th minute, Hicks crossed to Mendenhall for a 3-0 Eagle lead. Mendenhall's second goal of the game also is her 26
th at Ashland – 10
th-most in program history. Her 83 career points to that point were sixth-most in AU women's soccer annals.
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Hicks' assist is her fifth of the campaign.
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In the first minute of the second half, the Eagles made it a 4-0 contest when senior forward
Tori Haggit scored her second goal of the season. Mendenhall had the helper, her seventh of the season.
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Hicks' second goal of the night, 11
th of the season and 29
th of her collegiate career in the 52
nd minute made it a 5-0 game, and senior midfielder
Merrik Mihalek had the assist for her first of 2024.
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In the 59
th minute, the Panthers got on the board thanks to a goal by Madeline Hartke, assisted by Avery Bowden.
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MENDENHALL'S BIG NIGHT…AND THE REST OF THE STORY
- For Mendenhall, it was a career-high five points in a game and third career brace on Saturday night.
- "It's just great to be out here and play with all the seniors and all the girls," Mendenhall said. "Tonight, we just had a really good night where everything is clicking together, and it's finally clicking for us. It's great to get the result on the field."
- For Hicks, it was her fifth collegiate brace.
- "Ever since we challenged them in the second half against Tiffin, they've been rolling on different cylinders," Paulino said. "They put it in the back of the net for us."
- Fifth-year goalkeeper Mackenzie Simon played the first half and made two saves, while senior keeper Maddie Dolenga played the second half and made one stop.
- Ashland had a decided 31-8 shots advantage, and took 10 of the game's 11 corner kicks.
UP NEXT
Ashland will stay at home to take on Kentucky Wesleyan (4-9, 3-6) on Thursday (Oct. 24) at 6:30 p.m. That will be the team's Breast Cancer Awareness Night.
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