JERSEY CITY, NJ—Visiting NJIT won its first women's soccer match of 2013, 3-2, at Saint Peter's, after going up 3-0 in the opening half Thursday afternoon. The Highlanders' lead held up despite a pair of second-half goals for the hosts in what ended as a 3-2 victory for the Highlanders at Joseph J. Jaroschak Field.
 
Thursday's win for NJIT was it first of the season in three tries and the first head coaching victory for Mandi Risden, who had served three programs as an assistant coach since 2000. After coaching at Rutgers and Brown, she came to NJIT in 2008 and took the helm in April of this year.
 
NJIT, now 1-2, was scoreless in home defeats last weekend (0-2 on Friday vs. Temple; 0-3 on Sunday vs. Rhode Island). However, the Highlanders broke the drought quickly in their road opener, getting on the board at 2:46 thanks to sophomore Kaelyn Gamel's unassisted marker.
 
Freshman Dana Schules added a second goal for NJIT, finding the back of the net for the first time in her three-match career, unassisted in 28th minute. Seniors Camille Billing and Rebecca Tustin combined to make it 3-0 for the visitors, with Billing scoring off of Tustin's assist at 43:28.
 
The opening NJIT goal was also the first in the career of Gamel, who started 15 games in 2012, but did not find the back of the net as a freshman. Billing, a senior, scored twice for the first time since 2011. She netted two goals her freshman year (2010; including one at Saint Peter's); once in 2011; and none in 2012, when she played just two games before October.
 
Down 3-0 at halftime, Saint Peter's (0-2) waited until more than 20 minutes into the second half to get on the scoreboard. But when the Peacocks finally did score, they struck twice in 96 seconds. Both SPU tallies were unassisted, with Nicole Tafrow ringing the bell at 67:13 and Ashley Drozd following with a goal at 68:49. The goals were the first at Saint Peter's for Tafrow, a junior college transfer, and Drozd, a freshman.
 
The total shots were 9-5 for NJIT, with the winners putting five shots on goal to three for Saint Peter's. Both goalkeepers went the distance, with sophomore Samantha Bersett earning the win for the Highlanders on one save. Freshman Molly O'Halloran stopped two shots for the Peacocks. One of the Highlander shots, by Alex Adam, hit the post close to the time of Gamel's opening goal.
 
NJIT is now 5-2-1 in its all-time series vs. Saint Peter's, with wins in the last four annual matchups between the two programs who are located less than 10 miles apart.
 
Next up for the Highlanders is a Sunday 2 pm match on Long Island at Stony Brook, which is 1-0-1 in 2013 and will be home to Fairfield on Friday before entertaining NJIT two days later.
 
Stony Brook was 2102 champion of the America East Conference, advancing to the NCAA Women's Division I  College Cup, where it fell to #9 Maryland in the opening round. The Seawolves feature four returning players who were all-conference last season.