FULTON, Mo.- After a heartbreaking loss in their opening match of the season, William Woods women's soccer (1-1) exploded for nine goals in a shutout performance over former AMC foe Hannibal-LaGrange (0-2).
The Owls offense started just a minute into the match as senior midfielder Megan Hughes netted her first goal of the season. Hughes, coming off a two-goal season just a year ago, rocketed a shot past the HLGU keeper to ignite a William Woods offense that would not be stopped.
Standout forward, KG Malefo finally found the net in the young 2026 campaign. This time, the senior from Pretoria, South Africa, scored back-to-back goals in quick succession. The first came off a cross-pitch feed from Ray Laster while Malefo needed no help slotting her second goal of the contest to grow WWU's lead to three in just the tenth minute.
Sophomore Addie Robins was the next Owl in the scoring column, as she leveled her first goal of the year off a sharp pass from Malefo to extend the lead. Woods' last score of the eventful first half was scored by transfer-junior Kirsten Kramer. The John Wood CC transfer struck the ball past the keeper to cement a 5-0 first half for the Owls.
William Woods tallied four more goals in the second 90 minutes of play. Braelyn Hannigan scored her first collegiate goal on a shot out of reach of the keep, from Laura de Vries who placed an artful pass just out of reach of the Trojan backline. Giulia Starman found Woods' seventh goal of the contest on an assist from Tess Roberts, who found a goal just moments later. De Vries tallied the last score of the night for Woods as freshman Claudia Rodriguez dished a pass through the defense to find the outstretched foot of de Vries.
In goal, freshman Bell Dehner recorded a plethora of firsts: first collegiate game played, first collegiate clean sheet, and first collegiate win in net.
Woods hosts Saint Mary of the Woods on Saturday for their last home matchup before they hit the road for their first Heart of America Athletic Conference Contest.
