TIFFIN, Ohio – Makenzie Damsa scored in the 71st minute for what turned out to be the deciding goal as the Heidelberg University women's soccer team earned a hard-fought 2-1 win over Saint Mary's College on Saturday afternoon at Hoernemann Stadium.  The Student Princes were able to overcome being outshot 15-9 in the match to run their winning streak to six, their longest in a single season since 1996.  

HU improved to 6-1 on the season with the win while Saint Mary's fell to 7-2.

Meredith Bruce made seven saves in goal, anchoring down the Berg defense in the victory.

In the 8th minute, the Student Princes earned a corner kick, which was executed perfectly when Megan Hamilton played a ball into the box that was headed into the lower center of the back of the net by Audrey Kaufman, giving HU an early 1-0 lead.

That lead was short-lived, however, as Saint Mary's wasted little time tied things up in the 18th minute with a shot from 25 yards out that went off the crossbar and in.

The Belles maintained much of the possession for the remainder of the first half, generating three corner kicks, but the Berg defense held strong as the score remained knotted at one entering halftime.

In the 71st minute, Damsa took a shot from just outside of the left side of the box and was able to bend the ball into the side netting, just over the outstretched arms of the Saint Mary's keeper, giving HU a 2-1 lead.

The Heidelberg defense was able to hold against all that the Belles could throw at them down the stretch, including a pair of key saves by Bruce in the 90th minute to preserve the win.

"We speak about stepping into the arena for each other and earning the respect of teams every day ... and we did just that today," said interim Head Coach Maddie McLaughlin. "St Mary's is a very talented and well coached team. They challenged us and tested our limits. Adversity is exactly what we need before conference and the ladies proved to be gritty and handle it well. We will continue to fight for the respect of other teams and prove to be a team that is connected and dangerous."

The Student Princes will look to continue their winning ways on Monday when they travel to undefeated Westminster College (6-0-1).  That match is scheduled to begin at 5:00 PM in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania.