GEORGETOWN, Tx. – The Berry College Vikings blew out the Southwestern University Pirates 16-4 to earn their fourth win of the season. In this dominating performance, the Vikings had four different players score three goals. The defense was the highlight, shutting out the Pirates in the first half and forcing eighteen of Southwestern's 24 turnovers.
Berry drew control for the first possession of the game. Katie Smith got things going, quickly scoring a goal for the Vikings just thirty seconds into the contest. The Vikings took the reins early, Myskina Bolavong's three saves helped force a shutout, allowing the Vikings to jump out to a commanding 5-0 lead to end the period.
The Vikings drew control once again to begin the second period and kept their momentum rolling, Isabel Fransen cashing in another goal off an assist from Dani Taraska. They had full control of this game. Starting on defense, the Vikings held the Pirates to just two shots in the period. That tenacity translated into offense as they turned it up a notch attempting ten shots. Their shutout continued and the Vikings ended the period with a daunting 10-0 lead.
With two periods to go, the game seemed all but over as the Vikings continued their domination to bring the score to 13-0, but the shutout couldn't last forever, as the Pirates finally scored their first goal of the contest in this period. They put together a little run of their own before the period ended, scoring two making the score 13-3, bringing the deficit back down to where it was when the period began.
Still down big entering the fourth, Southwestern needed to lock in to make things interesting, but instead they were locked out. The Vikings didn't let their large advantage make them complacent, immediately causing a Southwestern turnover. Keeping their foot on the gas, Maddie Mashburn scored the first two goals of the period for the Vikings.
Destynie Huynh had Berry's last goal for the game, pushing the score to sixteen. Though locked out for most of the period, the Pirates could at least find some solace in scoring one more goal before the game was out, making the final score 16-4.
The Vikings travel to Grand Rapids, MI to take on the Calvin University Knights March 10th at 11:00 a.m.
