Middletown, Conn. - Sophomore Nicole Stauffer (Cheshire, Conn.) scored twice in an 11-minute span late in the second half to lead the visiting Trinity College Bantams to a 2-0 victory over the Wesleyan University Cardinals in New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) women's soccer action this afternoon on Jackson Field.  Trinity wins its third consecutive conference contest to improve to 7-5-1 overall and 3-4-1 in the NESCAC, while the Cardinals drop to 1-10-2 overall, 0-7-1 in the league, and extend their winless streak to six games (0-5-1) with their second setback in a row.

Stauffer's game-winning goal came in the 71st minute, as Trinity wrestled momentum from the Cardinals midway through the second half.  Bantam sophomore midfielder Laura Nee (Duxbury, Mass.) sent a cross from the right wing through the box into an empty left wing, but rookie back Sarah Connors (Winnetka, Ill) outraced her defender to the ball and one-timed a pass to Stauffer who controlled the ball and quickly knocked it past Wesleyan goalie Jessica Tollman from 10 feet away in front of the goal.  Trinity was outshot, 12-6, 54 minutes into the game but finished with a 20-14 shooting edge by the end.  Stauffer added an insurance tally from rookie Alexa Barbaresi (Newport Beach, Calif.) when her shot from close on the right side ricocheted off a Wesleyan defender and Tollman before crossing the line.  Trinity sophomore forward Rachel Zanko (Grand Rapids, Mich.) caused chaos among the Wesleyan defense while trying to deflect Stauffer's shot in, and the confusion helped allow the ball to sneak past the Cardinal defenders.

In the first half, both teams had close chances including Nee who was stopped by Tollman from point-blank range on the left side after a pass from the wing by classmate Andi Nicholson (Grafton, Mass.) in the 18th minute and Bantam senior tri-captain midfielder Elisa Dolan Bethesda, Md.) whose blast from the top of the box forced Tollman to leave her feet to make a save in the 37th minute.  Bantam junior goalie Monica DiFiori (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) made two clutch saves against Wesleyan sophomore Chrissie Gonzalez-Gandolfi in the first half, and added a pair of stops in the early moments of the second half to keep the game scoreless. 

Trinity very nearly got on the board in the middle of the second stanza.  Sophomore midfielder Kendra Lena (Madison, Conn.) snuck a pass by the Wesleyan defense in the box that Tollman just reached before Trinity senior forward Karyn Barrett (Cape Elizabeth, Maine) in the 56th minute, while junior Julia Leahy (Hingham, Mass.) and sophomore back Sheena Landy (Durham, Conn.) had shots sail wide and just high, respectively, less than two minutes later.  In the 58th minute Barrett controlled the ball from 10 feet out in the box but lifted her shot over the cross bar.  DiFiori finished with eight saves to earn her sixth shutout of the fall while Tollman totaled nine saves for the Cardinals.