“I knew I was close to the record, but I didn’t think it was going to happen that night,” Napoli said. “It hasn’t hit me yet but everyone has been really great, congratulating me. I have the best support from my team, friends and family.”
Sophomore forward Greta Samuelsdottir said seeing her teammate break the record was “amazing.”
“We don’t really focus on the numbers and facts and who’s scoring the points while we’re playing, but she’s incredibly humble and it was the cherry on top of winning,” she said.
Earlier in the game, Napoli put the Huskies up 1-0 when she netted a cross-field lob from junior forward Hanna Terry. The assist marked Terry’s first of the season.
The goal gave Napoli enough points to tie Northeastern’s previous career goal record, set by Kristin Kowalik, who played for the Huskies from 2003 to 2006.
The Husky defense stayed strong throughout the chippy match and freshman goalkeeper Paige Burnett registered her second career collegiate shutout.
“It’s hard to keep your concentration in a game like that,” Samuelsdottir said, regarding the physical intensity of the match. “I try to focus more on the game. The best comeback is scoring goals. You just can’t let the way another team plays frustrate you.”
The Huskies hope to extend their two-game win streak this weekend.
“Losing four games was really rough,” Napoli said. “Now that we’re on our way up I’m really hoping this is setting the tone for the rest of our season.”
The coaching staff set up the early season schedule against difficult teams on purpose to prepare the Huskies for play within their conference, assistant coach Ashley Phillips said.
“Winning two good games against UNH and Rhode Island really helped them get over the bumps in the road we experienced earlier in the season,” she said.
Samuelsdottir said she agreed, hoping that the team is able to stay on the track they’re on currently.
“We have such a good team and an intelligent group of girls,” Samuelsdottir said. “I really think we’ll stay on the track that we’re on right now. It’s about getting the whole group together and clicking.”
The Huskies head back to Parsons Field this Friday at 6 p.m. to take on Virginia Commonwealth University in their first conference match of the season.
