Stony Brook tops Fairfield to stay unbeaten

August 30, 2013

Stony Brook, N.Y. - The Stony Brook women's soccer team (2-0-1) posted its second straight shutout on Friday with a 2-0 victory over Fairfield at LaValle Stadium. Junior Shannon Grogan (Eastampton, N.J.) scored her first collegiate goal to put the Seawolves ahead in the 54th minute, before sophomore Stella Norman (Lakewood, Colo.) added a second on a free kick 23 minutes later.

Coach Sue Ryan's Reaction

"One of our goals as a team is to stay undefeated at home, so this was very important for us. We were able to capitalize first and that made the difference in the game, but we had to fight tooth and nail for all 90 minutes."

Goal Recaps

• After a scoreless first half, the Seawolves seized control of the match in the 54th minute when senior Julianne Palm (Stilwell, Kansas) collected a loose ball in the defensive zone and chipped a long pass up the field and over the Fairfield defense. Grogan raced to meet the ball, before taking a touch and slipping it to the right of the keeper for the go-ahead strike.
• Stony Brook continued to pressure the Fairfield net and it eventually paid off in the 77th minute when Norman earned a free kick from outside the box on the right wing. The sophomore then stepped up and drilled a powerful shot off the fingertips of the Fairfield keeper and under the crossbar for her second free kick goal of the season.

The Numbers Game

• Stony Brook outshot Fairfield (0-3-0) by a 15-11 margin.
• Senior Larissa Nysch (Dresher, Pa.) led the Seawolves with four shots.
• Seawolves' keeper Ashley Castanio (Oceanside, N.Y.) made three saves to earn her sixth career shutout.
• Fairfield keeper Kathleen Early also made three stops.

News & Notes

• Norman now has at least one point in all three games this season (2 goals, 3 assists).
• Norman has already surpassed her scoring output from last season, when she recorded six points on two goals and two assists.
• The Seawolves have outscored their opponents by a 10-2 margin overall, including an 8-1 margin in the second half.
• Stony Brook has scored at least two goals in each of its three games.
• Palm now has two assists in her last two games; she had just one assist in her previous 41 games as a Seawolf.
• The Seawolves are unbeaten through their first three games for the first time since 2000 when the team started 3-0-0.

Up Next

Stony Brook will look to remain unbeaten when it hosts NJIT on Sunday at 2 p.m.