WILMINGTON, North Carolina – UNCW used three goals in the opening 28 minutes to build an early lead and added an insurance goal in the 63rd minute to earn a 4-1 Colonial Athletic Association victory over Hofstra at the UNCW Soccer Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
 
The Seahawks, who earned their first conference win of the season, improved to 7-3-2 overall and 1-1-1 in the CAA. Meanwhile, Hofstra dropped its fourth straight contest to fall to 6-6-1 overall with a 0-4-0 mark in league play.
 
Senior midfielder Kennedy Ulrich gave UNCW a very quick 1-0 lead when she scored in the second minute after dribbling through the Hofstra defense and firing a 10-yard shot for her first goal of the season.
  Junior forward Brittany Cline upped the advantage to 2-0 when she took a pass from senior midfielder Moa Jarl and scored the first goal of her career with a shot from eight yards.
 
After Hofstra trimmed the deficit to 2-1 with 20:12 remaining in the first half on a penalty kick goal from Kristin Desmond, the Seahawks reclaimed a two-goal edge when junior forward Serenity Waters netted her sixth goal of the year off an assist from junior defender Savannah Andrews.
 
The Seahawks increased the margin to 4-1 with 27:15 remaining when junior defender Madison Melnick converted a penalty kick for her fourth goal of the year.
 
Senior goalkeeper Liisa Rahkola posted a season-high five saves for UNCW, which held a slim 13-12 advantage in shots over the Pride.
 
Sophomore Ashley Wilson and senior Friederike Mehring combined to make two saves in the loss for Hofstra.  
 
#SeahawkStats: UNCW earned its first win at home against Hofstra since Oct. 25, 2002, ending a seven-game home winless streak in the series … The Seahawks have posted a 2-0-1 record in the last three games against Hofstra, including back-to-back wins … Hofstra still leads the all-time series by a 12-5-2 margin … UNCW has scored two or more goals in 8 of its 12 games this year, including four games with four or more goals … Over the last three years, the Seahawks are 27-2-3 when scoring two or more goals … UNCW has now had 13 different players score a goal this season after Cline and Ulrich tallied their first goal of the season … Melnick became the second UNCW player to convert a penalty kick after Waters scored on a penalty kick against North Dakota State on Sept. 18 … The Seahawks have now outscored their opponents by a 16-3 margin in the first half this season … UNCW outshot its opponent for the 11th time in 12 games this year.
 
Up Next for UNCW: The Seahawks embark on a four-game road trip on Friday, Oct. 7, when they visit Delaware for a 7 p.m. contest against the Blue Hens.     

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College Women's Soccer: UNCW 4, Hofstra 1
Hofstra  1-0 / 1
UNCW  3-1 / 4
 
Goals: HOF – Kristin Desmond (24:48 – pk); UNCW – Kennedy Ulrich (1:51), Brittany Cline (19:29), Serenity Waters (27:27), Madison Melnick (62:45). Assists: HOF – n/a; UNCW – Moa Jarl, Savannah Andrews. Saves: HOF – Ashley Wilson 0 (45:00, 3 goals allowed), Friederike Mehring 2 (45:00, 1 goals allowed); UNCW – Liisa Rahkola 5 (90:00, 1 goals allowed). Shots: HOF – 12; UNCW – 13. Corner Kicks: HOF – 4; UNCW – 10. Attendance: 451.

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