Game Summary

MANKATO, Minn. — It was their first game of the season, but the Saint Mary's University women's soccer team was in midseason form Friday evening.

The Cardinals' offense erupted for six goals, while the SMU defense — spearheaded by goalkeepers Jennifer Johnson (Racine, Wis.) and Mariana Sanchez (Pueblo, Mexico) — did not allow a goal as Saint Mary's opened its season with a 6-0 nonconference win over Bethany Lutheran.

"It was a great way for us to start the season," said SMU coach Tony Guinn. "It was nice to see our offense play the way it did — we created a lot of scoring opportunities, and did a good job of finishing on several of them — but it was really nice to see us play so well defensively.

"We take pride in our defense," continued Guinn, whose team allowed just 10 goals a year ago. "It seems pretty silly, but if your opponent doesn't score, you can't lose — and that's the approach we take."

It doesn't hurt when your team scores goals in bunches, either.

SMU jumped out to a 3-0 first-half advantage and equalled that offensive output in the second half en route to the season-opening win. Bethany Kaufmann (Green Bay, Wis.) led the Cardinals' offensive charge, scoring a pair of goals, while Abbey D'Acquisto (Racine, Wis.), Lisa Tlougan (Rochester, Minn.), Nina Cohn (St. Michael, Minn.) and Dana Winkler (Lake Geneva, Wis.) also found the back of the net for SMU.

"It was important for us to get off on the right foot — and we certainly did that," said Guinn. "We possessed the ball well, we played with great confidence and composure, and we finished well.

"All-in-all, it was a solid start."