Newport, R.I. – September 17, 2023 – The Springfield College women's soccer program put together a dominant performance as they downed Salve Regina University, 6-1, in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) opener for both squads.

Springfield improved to 3-1-2 overall and to 1-0-0 in league play, while Salve Regina, which took its first loss of the season this afternoon, fell to 1-1-3 and 0-1-0 in the NEWMAC.

First-year Julia Mateus (Ludlow, Mass.) put Springfield ahead 1-0 less than a minute into the contest as she registered the first goal of her collegiate career after she blasted the ball off the Salve Regina keeper on a short pass from sophomore Meredith Healy (Niantic, Conn.).

Prior to halftime, Springfield put the game away with three goals in a span of 14 minutes. Sophomore Kayla McGrath (North Adams, Mass.) finished a one touch pass from Healy after the ball fell into the box off a corner kick from senior Jen Walker (Webster, Mass.). Walker then posted Springfield's third goal when Healy picked up her third assist of the afternoon for the 3-0 edge.

Sophomore Kaitlyn Suller (Oviedo, Fla.) pushed Springfield's lead to 4-0 in the 32nd minute after finishing a pair of one touch passes from senior Carolyn Ives (Farmington, Conn.) and Walker.

Midway through the second stanza, McGrath found the back of the net for the second time as she headed home a free kick from senior Mu Kue (Hartford, Conn.). First-year Lexi Stone (Wilbraham, Mass.) finished the scoring for Springfield as McGrath's attempt ricocheted off the Salve Regina keeper and to the foot of Stone to account for the 6-1 final.

Stone tallied her first collegiate goal today, while McGrath moved into a tie for first place in the NEWMAC now with five goals in six games this fall.

As a team, Springfield held a 17-12 edge in shots. Junior Taryn Ryan (Holyoke, Mass.) earned her first win of the season between the pipes for the Pride with five saves.

Springfield returns to the pitch next weekend with a home NEWMAC matchup with Clark University at 1:00 pm from Brock-Affleck Field.

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