Aug. 28, 2003

ROMEOVILLE, Ill. - The Lewis women's soccer team capitalized on two first-half goals to carry momentum into the second half of its season opener and eventually win 5-1 over Calumet College.

Lewis (1-0-0) snapped a 20-game winless streak that dated back to Sept. 19, 2001 with the victory. The victory was also the first career coaching win for Lewis head coach Bill Bruno. Bruno was named the acting head coach after former head coach Mike Crowe resigned five games into the 2002 season.

"It was good to start the season off with a win," said Bruno. "After a trying season last year, it's a nice confidence boost for the team that I hope we'll carry with us for a while."

The Flyers claimed the lead for good when junior Vicky Fisher knocked a header into the back of the net off of a corner kick from Michelle Sternbauer (Elk Grove Village, Ill./Conant). Fisher's goal was her first as a Flyer.

"Vicky had to sit out last season due to NCAA transfer regulations," said Bruno. "She came out with something to prove and scored early which was nice to see."

Junior Caroline Kenny (Leixlip, Ireland/) scored what turned out to be the game-winning goal at 37:13. Kenny took a pass from Stacy Beaman and drove in from the left side of the goalkeeper's box for the score.

Staked with a 2-0 lead, Lewis piled on three more goals in the second half. Calumet (0-1-0) ended the shutout with a breakaway goal from Elizabeth Morales at 75:52.

Tallying for the Flyers in the second half were: Beaman (58:40, assist by Kenny and Sternbauer); Kenny (64:25, assist by Sternbauer, Beaman); Jenna Volpi (Chicago, Ill./Immaculate Heart of Mary) (89:25, assist by Kim Zbella (Chicago, Ill./Immaculate Heart of Mary)).

Volpi, a freshman and former Lemont High School star, registered her first collegiate goal in her first career game.

Kenny finished with two goals and one assist, Beaman posted one goal and two assists, while Sternbauer had three assists to lead the Flyers' scoring.

"We created a lot of scoring opportunities today," said Bruno. "We had very good chances for 2-3 more goals, but just didn't convert. Converting our scoring chances is something we're going to work on as the season progresses.

"You can only tell the girls that they're good so many times," said Bruno. "At some point they need to start believing it themselves and I think this victory will give them the confidence to start trusting themselves for the rest of the year."