With their win over the University of Louisiana at Lafayette on Monday, the Nicholls women’s soccer team set a new mark for the best start to a season in the program’s 14-year history.
The win gave the Colonels their fifth victory out of six games played in the season and extended their winning streak to four in a row. South Alabama has been the only team able to avoid defeat against Nicholls in a one-to-one overtime draw on Aug. 25.
The Colonels’ five wins equal the team’s win total from last season.
The Colonels have already hit their stride in front of goal, finding the back of the net 21 times. In comparison, Nicholls only scored 29 goals in 2012. Last year’s joint-top scorer, sophomore forward Spencer Valdespino, has already matched her output from season.
“We were a strong team last season, and most games we lost were by one goal. We just couldn’t figure out how to get that winning result,” senior midfielder Melissa Pestalozzi, a native of Tempe, Ariz., said. “This season, we are more eager to get to goal, taking more quality shots, giving us that many more opportunities. We have that fight all over the field and work harder for each other than ever before.”
Nicholls has also earned a bit of a reputation for dramatic victories. Their wins against the University of Louisiana at Monroe and Prairie View A&M came in overtime while Monday’s win came with nine seconds remaining in the game.”
“Winning those close games has set the standard that losing is not an option for us,” Pestalozzi said. “Teams can keep underestimating us and we will keep winning.  We know we are the stronger team and this season we are [applying] that [to] every team we face.”
The Colonels are hoping to carry their strong non-conference form into conference play.
“We’re definitely coming together.  We’re growing as a team. We have a lot of new players, the freshman are making an impact and the seniors are doing good things,” volunteer assistant coach Erik Solberg, who is in his first season with the Colonels, said. “I think that translates well heading into conference.”
The Colonels will finish out their non-conference schedule against the Alcorn State Lady Braves, who dropped their first game of the season to Nicholls’ Southland Conference rival Southeastern Louisiana by a score of nine to zero on Sept. 13 in Thibodaux.