MANCHESTER, N.H. – Freshman Nicole Rust (Hooksett, N.H.) scored her first collegiate goal in the first half of the game as the Saint Anselm College women's soccer team played to a 1-0 defeat of Bentley University on Wednesday afternoon at Melucci Field.

With the win, the Hawks will jump to 2-2-1 on the season, 1-1-0 in conference play, while the Falcons will dip to 1-3-0 overall and 0-2-0 in league play.

Rust found the back of the net for the 1-0 strike when senior Maura Kelly (Weymouth, Mass.) served in the ball from the right flank to Rust, in the middle of the box, and she headed it into the right side of the net.

The Hawks had a chance to double their lead when junior Alexa Lucci (Hope, R.I.) and sophomore Taylor Levy (Norton, Mass.) began a give and go that set up Lucci with a shot from the left corner of the box. Bentley goalkeeper Nicole Derba made a diving stop to punch the ball away at the near post, preventing the goal.

Bentley's best chance of the day came with just over two minutes left in the game as Kelsey Regan dropped a corner kick into the center of the box. Any shot attempt was taken away by senior Amy Millet (Lancaster, Pa.), who booted the ball from the box.

Saint Anselm goalkeeper's Gabriella Primera (Kennett Square, Pa.) and freshman Cassie Quattropani (East Hartford, Conn.) combined for nine saves, while Derba stopped eight of nine shots on goal. The Hawks held a 17-11 advantage in shots.

The Hawks return to the field Saturday, Sept. 21 at 1 p.m. when they play host to American International College. Stay up-to-date with the latest news, including game previews and recaps, directly from the Saint Anselm College athletic department by friending us on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/STAHawks) and following us on Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/STAHawks).