Box Score DENVER – Kristen Hamilton (Littleton, Colo.) had two assists, leading the University of Denver to a 2-0 victory over St. Mary’s at CIBER Field on Friday evening.
Anna Willis (Centennial, Colo.) scored for Denver (3-0-0) in the 20th minute. Willis’ first goal of the season came off a cross from the right side by Nikki Pappalardo (San Diego, Calif.) following a pass from Hamilton.
“We challenged our players to communicate better and just be more efficient, “ head coach Jeff Hooker stated in regards to the first half of play. “A lot of balls were given away. To be up one, nothing at halftime was nice. Then we got that second goal and our team kind of lifted their game in the second half.”
Nicholette DiGiacomo (Golden, Colo.) netted a goal for the Pioneers in the 77th minute, giving them a 2-0 lead. DiGiacomo’s goal came off a short pass from Stephanie Woo (San Mateo, Calif.) to Hamilton, who tipped a pass off her back heel.
”Nicholette told Kristen to back heel it to her and that’s what she did,” Hooker said. “It was a great finish by Nicholette. Those two have probably been playing together since they were 10 years old. That probably helped that a little bit too.”
Cassidy Rey (Arcadia, Calif.) was solid between the posts, as she tallied 11 saves against the Gaels (1-2-0) with four of them coming in the first half to record her second-consecutive shutout.
Willis finished the game with four shots, while DiGiacomo recorded 2-of-3 shots on goal. Jacey Birtcher (Temecula, Calif.) added three shots for Denver. The Pioneers totaled 16 shots, five of which were on frame.
Denver continues its season at UC Irvine on Sept. 1 at 12 p.m. MT. Fans interested in purchasing tickets for home matches can do so by phone at 303-871-2336, in person at the Richie Center box office or through DenverPioneers.com by clicking here.
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