Hooker, Highlanders Edge Winthrop

Rock Hill, S.C. -- Junior Jonita Hooker (Woodbridge, Va.) broke a 1-1 deadlock with a pair of late second half goals and Radford held off a late rally to edge Winthrop this afternoon. The victory snapped a four-game winless streak and improved Radford to 9-6-1 overall and 4-1-1 in the Big South.

Radford was able to take a 1-0 lead into halftime despite being out shot, 9-4 and not have a single corner kick to Winthrop's seven. Freshman Brianna Kipper (Hayes, Va.) gave RU the advantage when she launched a 30 yard shot past Winthrop keeper Kelly Turney in the 38th minute.
In the second half, the Lady Eagles caught a break when Radford inadvertently headed a shot into their own goal, tying the game at 1-1 61:55.

Hooker took over from there, scoring goals 2:11 apart in the 75th and 78th minutes, respectively, to give the Highlanders a 3-1 lead late in the game. The two goals tie Hooker for a team high nine.

Winthrop's Ashley Hallmon cut the lead to 3-2 on a goal at the 84th minute, but a late minute charge by the Lady Eagles fell short.

Sophomore Tara Oleartchick (Woodbridge, Va.) made a season-high eight saves, including five in the second half. It also tied her for her career-best total that she also recorded at West Virginia last season. The Lady Eagles out shot Radford, 18-8 and had a 9-2 advantage in corner kicks.

The Highlanders finish out the regular season this week with a pair of key home matches against Big South foes High Point and Liberty on Wednesday and Friday. Both matches kick off at 7 p.m.

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