Aston, PA – Cairn University women's soccer defeated Neumann University on Friday afternoon, 6-0, behind a hat trick from Courtney Novak. The Highlanders improved to 4-5 overall with the win and 2-1 in the CSAC, while Neumann dropped to 1-7 overall and 1-2 in the conference.
 
Novak, who led the team last season in goals scored (9), tallied in the 18^th, 43^rd, and 84^th minutes en route to the 6-0 win. The sophomore now has seven goals on the season with five assists for 19 points overall.
 
Meghan Wilson also added to her goal total this season, putting away two goals against the Knights. Wilson nabbed the game-winner in the sixth minute and netted her second of the game in the 38^th minute. Wilson's first was also assisted by Novak. Meghan leads the team in goals this season with 10; she is also third overall in the conference in goals scored.
 
Alicia Geistdorfer scored her second goal of the season today in the 30^th minute of the game. The Highlanders did not appear to overpower the Knights in the game, and in fact took less shots and shots on goal than the Knights. However, Mackenzie Paugh made nine saves as compared to Kirsten Montgomery's two saves.
 
"We are playing with a lot more confidence right now," said head coach Laura Behnke after the game. "We passed really well, and offensively set up our attacking sets and executed; it was a great win."
 
Last season, the Highlanders lost to the Knights 5-2, and the last time Cairn defeated Neumann in women's soccer dates back to the 2008 season with a 2-1 victory.
 
The Highlanders will try to continue to put notches in the win column when they travel to Rosemont College on Wednesday, Sept. 30, for a 7 p.m. game.