The University of Minnesota-Duluth (UMD) Bulldogs are intent on protecting their championship territory, with a little Fort Frances footwork added in for good measure.
Local import Sarah Noonan’s second-half goal punctuated the Bulldogs’ 3-0 win over the Concordia-St. Paul Golden Bears in the quarter-finals of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) tournament at Griggs Field in Duluth on Tuesday afternoon.
Cathy Wallace gave the top-seeded and defending NSIC champion Bulldogs (14-4-2) a 1-0 lead in the 14th minute for the only tally of the first half.
Elisa Cottingham made it 2-0 in the 58th minute before Noonan, in her freshman season at UMD, came off the bench to net her fourth goal of the year in the 82nd minute against the No. 8-seeded Golden Bears (3-17).
The Bulldogs, who hold a 42-5-2 regular-season record since 1996, will face fourth-seeded Southwest State on Friday afternoon in the NSIC semi-finals at St. Paul.
That winner heads to Saturday night’s championship game while the loser plays for third place Saturday afternoon.
