Sept. 23, 2016

Final Score: Loyola 7, Chicago State 0
Records: Loyola (2-7-2); Chicago State (1-8-0)
Location: Loyola Soccer Park -- Chicago, Ill.
Goalkeepers of Record: W: Maddie Ford (2-3-2); L: Gabby Klemp (1-5-0)
Stats: Box Score | Season Stats

In Short...
Bolstered by a hat trick from senior Ciara Murray, the Loyola University Chicago women's soccer team raced past Chicago State this evening, 7-0, on Senior Night at Loyola Soccer Park. The Ramblers improve to 2-7-2 on the year with the win, while the Cougars slip to 1-8-0.

Coach Bimbi's Thoughts...
"It was a very positive performance tonight. I thought at first it was very emotional after the ceremony so it was hard to get into the flow of the game. We talked to the girls about being a little bit more businesslike and having more of an edge in the second half. Scoring the early goals was nice but it was more about attention to detail on our end. Putting up the five goals in the second half was just a result of concentrating on all of the little things."

How It Happened
Following an emotional pregame ceremony where Loyola honored its six seniors, the Ramblers came out firing early on. Sophomore Jenna Szczesny forced a save out of Gabby Klemp, the Cougar goalkeeper, just 16 seconds in before Murray had her back-heel flick cleared off the line by the Chicago State defense only 90 seconds later. Loyola founds its breakthrough in the seventh minute when Szczesny sent a low cross into the box that Murray fired right into the center of the goal to put the Ramblers on top, 1-0.

Junior goalkeeper Maddie Ford made one of her two first-half saves in the 16th minute as she protected Loyola's lead by denying Taylor Rankin. With Loyola continuing to pepper the Chicago State netminder, Murray doubled the Rambler lead in the 32nd minute. The Strongsville, Ohio native was again on the receiving end of a low cross, this time from junior Katie Grall, that she calmly directed home to send the Maroon & Gold into halftime with a 2-0 advantage.

Loyola's offense continued to operate at a highly efficient rate coming out of the intermission. Junior Emily Lange tallied the first two goals of her collegiate career less than five minutes apart in the early stages of the second stanza to double the Loyola lead, 4-0. Junior Avalon Senn-Raemont picked up an assist on each goal, while Murray was also credited with a helper on Lange's second tally.

The Ramblers continued to press forward as the game entered its closing minutes. Junior Carolina Dunbar opened her account for the 2016 campaign in the 80th minute when she rifled home a rebound off of a blocked headed attempt by senior Ashley Bovee to put Loyola up, 5-0. Five minutes later, Murray completed her hat trick, directing a Grall cross into the back of the net to up the margin to 6-0. Sophomore Eleni Carr put an exclamation point on the evening in the 90th minute as she tucked her attempt from 15 yards inside the far post to close out an emphatic 7-0 triumph.

Looking At The Numbers
- Loyola's seven goals scored this evening are the program's most in a single game since a 10-0 win over Western Illinois on Sept. 26, 1997.
- The Ramblers held an advantage in nearly every statistical category, highlighted by a 23-4 edge in shots.
- Murray's hat trick was the first by a Rambler since Cynthia Morote-Ariza found the back of the net three times as part of a 3-0 win over Cleveland State back on Oct. 5, 2007.
- The goalkeeping duo of Ford and sophomore Cassidy Lentz each saw 45 minutes of action tonight as Loyola picked up its second clean sheet of the season.

Up Next
Loyola takes just over a week off before it travels to Springfield, Mo. to clash with Missouri State in its Missouri Valley Conference opener on Oct. 2. Kickoff from Betty and Bobby Allison South Stadium is slated for 1 p.m.