Aug. 26, 2007

Contact: Brian McCann

CLEVELAND, Ohio - Kent State's Amy Kessler scored two goals off corner kicks in the first 15 minutes of play and the Golden Flashes claimed a 2-0 win over Cleveland State in a women's soccer exhibition match on Sunday afternoon at Krenzler Field.

Kessler's first tally came at the 7:57 mark when she headed in a corner kick from Lisa Kurz. Kessler struck again less than six minutes later when she blasted a shot from five yards out off Brittany Fracasso's corner kick to make it 2-0. "Even though the score was against us this afternoon, I thought that we got an awful lot out of the match today," head coach Derrek Falor said. "Kent is a pretty good team and we were able to play with them all afternoon long.

"The goals off the cornerkicks would be an issue if we had spent any time this week trying to defend them," Falor said. "We have been more concerned with trying to determine our playing rotation and where we can best utilize our personnel."

After the initial offensive flurry by the Golden Flashes, CSU freshman goalkeeper Kelly Zinkiewich played well and finished with eight saves. "Kelly really showed that she is ready to play at this level. If she plays like that during the regular season, then she'll give us a chance to win almost every match," Falor said.

The Vikings, who were outshot, 11-10, had their best offensive chance midway through the first half when senior Heather Clapacs took a shot from 18 yards out that Kent State keeper Kris Nelson was able to save with a dive to her right.

Nelson finished with two saves in the first half, while Kelly Sherwood added two saves in the second half to finish the shutout.

The Vikings will open the 2007 regular season on Friday evening when they host St. Bonaventure at 5:30 pm at Krenzler Field in the second match of the CSU Fall Classic. The first match will feature DePaul and Ohio at 3:00 pm.