GREEN BAY, Wis. – Junior forwards Macy Hamblin and Jessica Frey each netted two goals on Friday as the Northern Kentucky University women's soccer team cruised to its fourth shutout in the last five games, defeating Green Bay, 4-0, in the Horizon League opener.

Sami Rutowski posted two assists on Friday while Katelyn Newton had one to round out NKU's stat leaders.

"Coming off a very emotional win at Vanderbilt last Sunday I thought our team showed a lot of maturity in how we prepared for our first Horizon League contest both from a physical and mental standpoint," said head coach Bob Sheehan. "We started the game as the aggressors and wanted to set the tone early and that's exactly what our players did."

"It's an exciting win because it's our first conference game and the entire team played really well," said Hamblin. "Coming off a big win, we didn't let that get in our head. We went in with the mindset that any team can win on any given day, and did what we needed to do."

With the win, NKU improves to 4-4-0 overall and opens HL play at 1-0-0. Green Bay dips to 0-7-1 overall and 0-1-0 in the League.

NKU Scoring Summary

• Each of NKU's four goals came in the first half.
• Hamblin struck early for the Norse with goals in the sixth and 15th minutes, both on assists from Rutowski. Frey also chipped in for a double-assist on the second goal of the match.
• Frey, who had a career-high six shots, scored the next pair of goals giving NKU a 4-0 lead at halftime. Frey's first goal, the team's third of the game, came in the 40th minute when the forward broke through the back line and beat the goalkeeper to the right, unassisted.
• Frey's second marker came on an assist from Newton on a pass inside the box in the 45th minute.

Between the Posts

• Emily Lohmann started in goal and benefited from a strong Norse defense that did not allow a shot on goal in the first half.
• Brooke Schocker made her first appearance of the season and logged 29 minutes of play. In the 75th minute Kelly Neumann also made her first appearance in goal this year.
• Green Bay did not put a shot on target until the 84th minute. The Phoenix posted two shots on goal in the final six minutes, both saved by Neumann.

First Half Summary

• The Norse wasted no time, posting three shots, all three on goal, within the first seven minutes including Hamblin's early marker for the 1-0 edge. She extended the Norse lead to 2-0 less than 10 minutes later.
• Frey then scored her two goals in a six minute span for the 4-0 result.
• NKU out-shot Green Bay 11-4 in the opening stanza including 8-0 in shots on goal, forcing Green Bay goalkeeper Kelly Kent to make four saves.

Second Half Summary

• Northern Kentucky managed 10 shots in the second half to Green Bay's six. Neumann stepped in to preserve the shutout with a pair of saves in the final minutes.
• Overall, Frey's career-best six shots was a game-high as she helped NKU out-shoot the Phoenix, 21-10.
• Payton Naylor also launched a trio of shots, all on goal, while Sam Davis added three shot attempts, one on goal.

Norse Notes

• Frey has three goals in the last two games for a team-leading seven points this season.
• The last time a Norse scored two goals in a single match was the season opener last season when Frey had two goals against Fort Wayne on Aug. 21.
• Frey's five points in a single game is the most since Megan Frye had five points October 20, 2012 against Lipscomb.
• As a team, NKU posted season highs in points (12), goals (four), assists (four), shots (21) and shots on goal (11).
• After allowing six goals in the first three games to open the season, NKU has held opponents to two goals in the last five games. All four victories have been shutouts.

Up Next

• The Norse return home for a Sunday match-up against Robert Morris at NKU Soccer Stadium. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. and will air live on ESPN3.