Saunders scores two as NU tops USC

Los Angeles -- Junior forward Kori Saunders scored two goals and senior forward Kelly Rheem booted the game winner as the fourth-ranked Nebraska soccer team topped USC, 3-2, in a physical contest before 258 fans at the Los Angeles Coliseum on Sunday.

The Huskers improved to 3-0-0, while the Women of Troy dropped to 1-2-0.

Rheem scored the game-winning goal at 80:03 when she fired a shot high into the middle of the net after a near miss by junior forward Christine Latham. USC senior goalkeeper Shaelyn Fernandes was left out of
position for Rheem's shot after Latham's shot hit the post. Latham earned her second assist of the season.

The Huskers scored first, less than a minute into the game, when Saunders put a ball in the net following a blocked shot by sophomore forward Christy Harms, who took NU's first shot of the game after a throw in from
senior midfielder Danica Carey. Harms earned her first assist of the year.

With the help of some miscommunication by the Husker defense, USC struck back two minutes later at 3:02 with an own goal. Nebraska first-year goalkeeper Erin Miller, a sophomore, recorded a career-high seven saves in the effort.

Saunders scored her second goal at 18:34, putting the ball in the right corner of the net from close range after a blocked shot by Harms, who earned her second assist of the game. Senior midfielder Meghan Anderson,
also credited with an assist on the goal, found Harms on a corner kick.

The Women of Troy tied the game at two when freshman midfielder Megan Katadelas kicked the ball into an empty net at 49:43 after Miller recorded a diving save on a shot from USC sophomore forward Jessica Edwards.

Nebraska outcornered USC, 8-3, but the Women of Troy outshot the Huskers, 15-14.

The Huskers will return to action on Friday, Sept. 14, when they take on 15th-ranked Washington in the Portland adidas Invitational in Portland, Ore., at 1 p.m. (CDT).