ST. PAUL, Minn. — For Saint Mary's University women's soccer coach Nick Rizzo, the first half of Thursday's matchup against St. Catherine must have felt like living through his worst nightmare.
 
Unfortunately, what transpired in the game's opening 45 minutes wasn't something concocted in Rizzo's subconscious — much to the dismay of the Cardinals' first-year head coach.
 
St. Catherine erupted for six first-half goals— including the first in the game's 14th minute and the last with 58 seconds until halftime — and the Wildcats never took their foot off the accelerator, rolling to a 10-0 victory over Saint Mary's at the SCU Soccer Field.
 
Amanda Elton got the Wildcats on the board in the 14th minute and Sophia Campbell netted back-to-back goals in a seven-minute span just six minutes after Elton's tally to make it 3-0. Amora Valencia pushed the lead to 4-0 in the 37th minute, and Emily Stephens delivered two more SCU goals before the break to make it 6-0.
 
The halftime intermission did nothing to slow the Wildcats, as Stephen scored her third straight goal 11 minutes out of the break, Lauren Witte found the back of the net in the 73rd minute, and Elton capped her hat trick with back-to-back goals two minutes apart with less 12 minutes to play.
 
The Cardinals (2-2-1 overall) are back in action on Sunday, playing host to Gustavus in their final home game of the season. Game time at Ochrymowycz Field is slated for 1 p.m.