Sept. 20, 2009

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OXFORD, Ohio - Senior goalkeeper Krista Pace pitched her 10th career shutout to tie Miami's all-time record and the RedHawks (4-3-0) scored a season-high four goals en route to a 4-0 victory over Cleveland State (1-7-0) Sunday afternoon at Miami Soccer Field on Senior Day. Rainy and dreary skies didn't dampen Miami's victory in the first-ever meeting with the Vikings, which also came on Miami soccer's alumni weekend and was the Red and White's final non-conference game of the regular season.

Pace (Toronto, Ont.) needed to make just three saves, two in the first half, to tie the record held by Katie Karlander (2001-02). She is already the school's career saves leader with 308, which is 150 more stops than Leigh Terry (2002-05), who sits second on the list, made in her career.

"It's always nice to get the shutout and certainly a nice tribute to Krista Pace for the all the hard work she's done and the great career she's had the last four years," Miami head coach Bobby Kramig said. "Our defense is slowly coming together. This was a difficult team to play against because they have a chaotic style that makes it difficult to organize against them. I thought our ladies in the back did a great job with Brooke Livingston being the leader in the back."

The two teams played even for the first 30 minutes of the match with the best scoring chance on either side coming from Cleveland State. In the 29th minute, freshman Valerie Stahl ripped a shot from outside the box that Pace blocked but junior Sylvia Olsby fired two shots close-in off of rebounds, the first of which Pace stopped and the second of which sophomore Courtney Clarke (Scarborough, Ont.) cleared off the goal line to keep the contest scoreless.

After CSU nearly took the lead, the RedHawks settled down and maintained possession, using short passes to control the flow of the game. Miami then broke the deadlock in the 34th minute, taking advantage of a miscue by Viking goalie Kelly Zinkiewich. Junior Julie Thompson (Glenview, Ill.) sent the ball toward goal from just in front of midfield, but Zinkiewich mishandled the routine stop as the ball squirted free and senior Allison Berkey (Hopkinton, Mass.) was on the spot to push the ball into the wide-open goal for her third score of the season.

With just over 30 seconds remaining in the half, the 'Hawks made it 2-0 when Thompson registered her third goal of 2009 after a give-and-go inside the penalty box with senior Kersta Carlson (Plymouth, Minn.) left Thompson with an open shot that she blasted past Zinkiewich. Miami would take the two-goal advantage into the half, despite holding just a 6-5 edge in shots.

The RedHawks wasted no time adding to their lead in the second stanza, taking possession off the whistle and earning a corner kick less than three minutes into the half. Carlson connected with junior Brooke Livingston (Lisle, Ill.) off the corner, who headed the ball in for her second-career goal and first of the campaign. Carlson earned her second assist of the day on the score and has a team-high five on the season already, including two two-assist games.

Miami then capped its scoring two minutes later in the 50th minute when freshman Jess Kodiak (Naperville, Ill.) put home a rebound off a shot from senior Jodi Zwingelberg (Elgin, Ill.). The assist was Zwingelberg's third of the year, while Kodiak scored her second goal in as many games. The four goals were the most the 'Hawks had scored since a 4-0 win over Western Michigan in 2007, while the margin of victory was their largest since that same game.

Zinkiewich matched Pace with three saves, all in the final 45 minutes, while Miami out-shot Cleveland State 15-8, including 9-3 in the final period. Berkey led Miami with four shots, while Kodiak took three. The RedHawks also earned six corners in the match to CSU's none.

Prior to the match, Berkey, Carlson, Pace, Zwingelberg, senior Stephanie Laser (Hinsdale, Ill.) and junior Eva Candia (Malmo, Sweden), who is in her final year of eligibility, were honored as part of the Senior Day festivities while soccer alumni were recognized at halftime.

The RedHawks return to the pitch Friday, Sept. 25, when they begin Mid-American Conference play at Buffalo. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET at UB Stadium.

--MURedHawks.com--