TAKOMA PARK, Md. - The Daemen College women's soccer team experienced an offensive eruption, defeating host Washington Adventist University 6-0 under the lights at the WAU Turf Field in a non-conference game tonight.

Daemen's first win of the season saw the Wildcats (1-4-1 overall) explode in the attacking third, netting six goals after scoring four times in the team's first five games this season.  WAU, a dual-member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA), dropped to 0-4-1 on the season.

Sophomore striker Stephanie Zurales (Woodridge, Ill./Downers Grove South) led the way, recording three goals for the first hat-trick of her career.  The output tonight gives Zurales a team-leading five goals this season, a total that presently ranks fourth among East Coast Conference players.  She has now recorded points in six of her last eight outings dating back to last season, with all six of her career goals occurring in that span.

Tonight's performance also marked the first hat-trick for a Daemen player since Samantha Engel (Dryden, N.Y./Dryden) pulled it off in the semifinal round  of the USCAA National Championships on November 1, 2013, a 4-1 Daemen win over Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.

Zurales opened the scoring tonight with a tally at the 21:54 mark when she burried a rebound opportunity.  Sophomore midfielder Chrissy Reville (Hamburg, N.Y./Frontier) was credited with an assist on the play.

Shortly thereafter, at the 26:10 mark, Zurales struck again, taking a corner-kick pass from junior Alexis Koral (Williamsville, N.Y./William Smith College) and finishing the play from inside the box.

The score would go to halftime that way, with Daemen leading 2-0, before Daemen added four second-half tallies, beginning with an own-goal that WAU inadvertently deflected into its own net.

That was followed by Zurales' third of the night, coming at the 60:19 mark.  She put away a shot from the right wing after taking a feed from sophomore midfielder Alexis Ruggiero (Lancaster, N.Y./Lancaster).

Less than a minute later, senior midfielder Ashley Griffin (Orchard Park, N.Y./Orchard Park) placed a shot from the top of the box just under the crossbar for her first goal of the season.  It was also Griffin's second career goal, and her first since October 28, 2012 when she scored in a 9-0 whitewash of Fisher College.

Then, at the 62:53 mark, sophomore midfielder Ellen Merchant (Jamestown, N.Y./Jamestown CC) notched her first goal in a Daemen uniform, tucking a shot inside the far post on an unassisted play to provide the final margin.

In goal, freshmen Meaghan O'Leary (Grand Island, N.Y./Grand Island) and Jackie Wescott (Glen Ellyn, Ill./Glenbard South) combined on the shutout for the Wildcats.  O'Leary made her sixth consecutive start and turned away two WAU attempts in the opening frame before giving way to Wescott who saw her first action of the season.  Wescott made three saves in the second half to keep the home-standing Shock at bay.

Daemen dominated possession, and out-shot the Shock an astounding 39-6 in the game.  The 39 shot attempts were the most by Daemen in a game since launching 33 attempts in a 1-0 shutout of Alfred University last season, on October 29, 2014.

The win today moved Daemen to 14-2 in games against non-NCAA Division II teams since the start of the 2013 season.

Daemen looks to make it a weekend sweep when they visit Lincoln University, a NCAA Division II independent in women's soccer, tomorrow (Sunday, September 20) for a 12 p.m. matinee in southeastern Pennsylvania.