Carbondale Reporter

The Southern Illinois University women's soccer team (3-1-2) defeated the Lions of North Alabama, 3-1, on Thursday night.

"I thought we played some scintillating soccer tonight. I'm really proud of the reaction, not just tonight but the reaction since last Thursday," head coach Graeme Orr said. "A good sign of a team when they have that first defeat is how they're going to respond and they trained really hard all week. We were brave on the ball tonight."

Sophia Schlicklin highlighted the game with two goals. Schlicklin's first goal came in the first two minutes of play to put the Salukis up 1-0 early. The Lions responded quickly in the fourth minute of play to tie the score at 1-1.

Maycie Massingill scored her first goal as a Saluki in the 32nd minute giving Southern Illinois the 2-1 lead. Dana Cruz got the assist on the goal, which is her second on the season.

In the second half, Schlicklin found the back of the net again giving the Salukis a 3-1 lead in the 51st minute of play.

Goalkeeper Fabiana Solano started in her sixth-straight game and faced eight shots. Lucy Horn also started in her sixth-straight game and played the full 90 minutes.

"That's the first time we've beat them as a program, I think that's a good stepping stone of how we can now move on to a tough game Sunday," Orr said.

The Salukis are back at home Sunday, Sept. 8, against Lindenwood at 1 p.m.

Follow all updates by following SIU Soccer on Twitter at @SIU_Soccer, Facebook.com/SalukiSoccer, and Instagram at @SIU_Soccer. Fans can also download the "Salukis" Mobile App from App Store or Google Play Store.

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