WOMEN’S SOCCER

Call it a haul, a poker or simply a super hat trick—no matter the name, Elana McGinnis’ four-goal masterpiece powered the HU women’s soccer team to a commanding 6-1 victory over IU Kokomo Wednesday night under the lights at Kokomo Municipal Stadium.

The Foresters wasted no time asserting control, striking three times in a ten-minute span midway through the opening half. McGinnis opened the floodgates in the 14th minute with a screamer that deflected off the keeper’s hands into back netting after chasing down a feed from Courtney Tobin. Minutes later, Jianna Simons doubled the advantage with a lofted strike from the left side before linking up on a given and go to McGinnis for her second of the night and HU’s third by the 24th minute.

The Cougars briefly closed the gap by scoring less than a minute into the second half, but HU’s response was immediate and emphatic. Sophie Shepherd found McGinnis for a tap-in just three minutes later, then created her own moment by winning a ball near midfield and beating the keeper for a 5-1 Forester lead. McGinnis capped her historic night in the 73rd minute, racing onto a threaded ball from Jada Mia Lee and burying her fourth tally of the evening to seal the 6-1 blowout.

“This was another momentous push toward the trajectory of our season,” said Coach Keaton Albert. “The team played confident, together and responded to adversity. I’m proud of each player and accomplishment. We played for our four sisters today. We know we have yet to play our best soccer, and we are thanking God for another step toward following His narrative.”

The Foresters outshot the Cougars 24-10 and have now strung together four straight wins to improve to 4-1 on the year. HU returns home Saturday to host Olivet Nazarene at 6:00 p.m.