WEST LIBERTY, W.Va. – A fluke goal on the opening shot of the game proved to be the difference on a soggy Sunday afternoon as the Notre Dame (Ohio) women's soccer team edged West Liberty, 1-0, in a mutual season opener at the West Family Athletic Complex.
    A hard rain had fallen all morning and was still coming down as play began. In the fifth minute, the Falcons' Ellie Gess collected a ball roughly 30 yards out from goal and launched a well-paced drive toward the cage.
    The ball landed about 10 yards short but skidded sharply off the rain-slicked turf, glancing high off the keeper's right shoulder and into the goal.
    The visitors controlled the run of play for most of the first half but the WLU defense was equal to the task and trailed just 1-0 at the break.
    Coach Barry Christmas's Hilltoppers took a more aggressive tack on the offensive end over the final 45 minutes, creating several scoring chances but couldn't come up with the equalizer.
    The stats largely evened out over the course of the match. Notre Dame had an 11-8 edge in shots but the Falcons managed only three shots over the final 45 minutes. The Hilltoppers launched 6 of their 8 shots in the second half and also forced 6 corner kicks to 4 for the visitors.
    Jordan Pasalaqua came up big for Notre Dame, recording four of her five saves in the second half to preserve the shutout win. Olivia Montgomery had six saves in goal for West Liberty.
    The Lady Hilltoppers will try to even their record on Friday when they host Fairmont State under the lights at the West Family Athletic Complex. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
  Notre Dame     1  0 – 1
West Liberty    0  0 – 0      NDC: Ellie Gess (unassisted), 4:49      Shots: Notre Dame 11, West Liberty 8
     Saves: Notre Dame 5 (Jordan Pasalaqua 5), West Liberty 6 (Olivia Montgomery 6)
     Corners: Notre Dame 4, West Liberty 6