WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University women's soccer team delivered an offensive showcase on Wednesday afternoon, racing past Saint Benedict 5–1 behind a dominant first half and a hat trick from Lauryn Skoruppa with her partner in crime, Samantha Munson putting on a show!
Three words… Munson and Skoruppa.
The dynamic duo was unstoppable, combining for all five of Saint Mary's goals in the Cardinals commanding win over the Bennies. Skoruppa notched a hat trick and added two assists to Munson for eight points, while Munson tallied a pair of goals and an assist of her own to Skoruppa.
Whether finishing chances or setting each other up, the two were in perfect sync from the opening whistle, creating a one-two punch that Saint Benedict simply couldn't contain.
The Cardinals wasted no time setting the tone, breaking through in the seventh minute when Skoruppa buried a split through the defenders from Lauren Fields to make it 1–0. Less than three minutes later, Munson doubled the lead off an assist from Skoruppa, giving Saint Mary's full control early.
Saint Mary's kept pressing, and in the 28th minute Skoruppa struck again, finishing a feed from a rainbow pass by Munson to push the score to 3–0 heading into halftime.
Skoruppa completed her hat trick with a rocket to the upper 90 just 50 seconds into the second half, extending the Cardinals advantage to 4–0. Saint Benedict pulled one back in the 71st minute on an Olivia Smith penalty kick, but Saint Mary's quickly answered.
Munson capped the scoring in the 75th minute, converting another setup from Skoruppa for the 5–1 final margin.
Goalkeeper Anna Peckosh was steady between the posts, making seven saves to backstop the Cardinal victory.
Skoruppa's performance came within striking distance of two program records, finishing just one point shy of the single-game record of points set in 2010, and one goal short of matching the four-goal mark that has stood since that same season.
With the win, the Cardinals move back into playoff contention, sitting in fifth place in the conference standings. The top six teams qualify for the conference tournament, and with four games still remaining, Saint Mary's is focused on maintaining its momentum and securing a postseason berth. The Cardinals will look to keep rolling on Saturday, October 25, when they travel to face the St. Scholastica Saints at 3:30 p.m.
