Madonna University Athletics

FORT WAYNE, Ind. - Marlena Ballnik broke a scoreless tie at 52:31 and scored twice as Madonna University (9-5-1) defeated Indiana Tech (2-8-3) 4-0 on Wednesday, Oct. 14, at Warrior Athl. Field in Fort Wayne, Ind. The Crusaders remained unbeaten in conference play at 6-0-1.

Madonna tested Indiana Tech goalkeeper Madison Strain throughout the first half but entered the break tied 0-0 despite putting all five shots on goal. Strain stopped Canses Gibson just 39 seconds into the match and saved Nadine Jawad's header at 42:41. At the other end, Grace McCormick denied Isidora Pozo at 24:23 for Madonna's lone first-half save.

A defensive stop helped set the stage for the breakthrough. Addison Beil saved Leticia Guimaraes' shot at 51:58, and 33 seconds later Ballnik scored off an assist from Carly Roth. Ballnik then converted a penalty kick at 67:10 to make it 2-0, finishing the match with two goals on two shots.

Gibson extended the advantage to 3-0 with an unassisted goal at 77:23 and finished with three shots, all on target. Chelsey Chambless also put all three shots on goal and received Madonna's only yellow card at 79:52. The Crusaders generated 10 second-half shots while limiting Indiana Tech to two.

Beil stopped Niya King's attempt at 85:51 to preserve the shutout before Indiana Tech's Yamileth Segura received a red card at 87:05. Lillian Hayter supplied the final goal at 89:58, scoring with two seconds remaining off Roth's second assist. Hayter put both shots on target, while Strain finished with seven saves for Indiana Tech, which fell to 0-4-2 in conference play.

McCormick and Beil each played 45 minutes, combining for three saves and the shutout, with Beil credited with the win. Cassidy Derry played the full 90 minutes for the Crusaders. Madonna finished with a 15-6 advantage in shots, an 11-3 edge in shots on goal and a 4-3 margin in corner kicks.

The Crusaders will be back in action on Saturday, October 17th as they travel to Defiance, Ohio to take on the Yellowjackets of Defiance College. Kickoff is set for 1:00 PM.