NDC bites back
Five unanswered goals top Gators

MEADVILLE, Penn. – Notre Dame defeated Allegheny College (PA) Wednesday, 11-5, to even their season record at 3-3. The Falcons scored five unanswered goals in the game, after leading 6-5 in the first period. The NDC defense and goalkeeper Kylie Flett (Sr/Adelaide, Australia) blanked the Gators in the game's second stanza.

Molly Merrill (Jr/Medina, OH) and Gena McPherson (So/Brampton, ONT) each notched a hat trick, with three goals apiece, as Notre Dame earned their third consecutive victory since starting the season 0-3. Junior attacker April Pegler (Bryn Mawr, PA) added two goals and two assists. The Falcons' three-game winning streak is the second-longest in the program's four seasons. NDC orchestrated a 10-game streak in 2007.

Allegheny scoring was lead by Jensen Paterson (Fr/Atlanta, GA) who finished with two goals and one assist.

Flett turned away eight shots to earn the victory between the pipes. The veteran netminder has now allowed just 13 goals over her last three games. The NDC defense is yielding just 7.2 goals per game through their first six.

The Falcons will take thier three-game winning streak to Erie, Penn. Saturday, where they'll face Regis University (CO) in a neutral site affair. The opening draw on the campus of Gannon University is slated for 3:30pm.

NOTES FROM THE NEST...

HATS OFF: Gena McPherson's three tallies Wednesday run her season total to 20 goals. That leads the squad. McPherson has notched a hat trick in four consecutive contests. The sophomore from Brampton, Ontario has 15 goals over that stretch. ... McPherson scored 42 goals in 15 games a year ago.

THIRD TIME'S A CHARM: Wednesday's 11-5 win marked Notre Dame's first victory over Allegheny in three tries. The Gators sank NDC by a combined score of 35-10 in a home-and-home series in 2005 and 2006. The two squads had a meeting wiped out by inclement weather in 2007.

LUCK OF THE DRAW: The five draw controls nabbed by Molly Merril tied the NDC single-game record orginally set by Jenna Schuerman (Jr/Savage, MN) versus Alfred on Apr. 25, 2007. Merrill currently has nine draw controls this season and ranks second on the team.