High five for Quinnipiac's Velaj

Bobcat freshman bags quintet of goals against NJIT

September 22, 2008

Furtuna Velaj (Stamford, Conn.) scored five of Quinnipiac’s six goals as the women’s soccer team shut down New Jersey Institute of Technology, 6-0, on Sunday.

Quinnipiac's record improves to 3-2 while NJIT drops to 1-8.

Velaj now has the most points in a game this season in the NEC, and tallied the most points in a game for an NEC team since Mount St. Mary's Mary Adelsberger totaled 10 points against Delaware State on Sept. 17, 2003.

Furtuna Velaj

Furtuna Velaj (11) had a hat trick before halftime Sunday against NJIT (photo by Linda Wooster/Quinnipiac Athletics).

Velaj’s 10 points marks the most points scored by a Quinnipiac soccer player at the Division I level. She now has more goals (eight) in five games than anyone scored last season for Quinnipiac.

The Bobcats dominated throughout the game. Velaj scored her first goal in the seventh minute when she received a pass from junior defender Justine Lombardi (Enfield, Conn.) and dribbled it in front of the net. She then drilled a shot to the left side of the goal past Highlanders keeper Sadie Mele.

Velaj’s second goal came on a penalty in the 25th minute. After being taken down by an NJIT defender in the box, Velaj stepped up to the spot and swiftly kicked the ball into the upper left corner of the net.

Velaj made it a hat trick just four minutes later. She was on the left wing, just outside the penalty area, and sent a powerful volley that arched over the outstretched fingers of Mele. It marked the first time since Oct. 17, 2005 that a Quinnipiac women’s soccer player scored three times in a half; Leandra Price completed the feat against Robert Morris in a 5-2 win.

Velaj continued her rampage in the second half with a goal in the 51st minute. She received a pass from forward Susan Donovan (Cork, Ireland) and dribbled in from the right side of the pitch. After maneuvering around the Highlander defense, Velaj sent a low shot on the ground to the right of Mele and into the net.

Nine minutes later, junior defender Olivia Kravitz (Canton, Conn.) passed to Velaj on the right flank. Velaj sent in a cross, and it bounced off Mele’s body and into the net for the freshman‘s fifth goal of the match.

Freshman forward Chelsea Smith (Terryville, Conn.) scored the Bobcats’ sixth goal in the 74th minute of play, receiving a pass from sophomore midfielder Lindsay Oliveri (Waltham, Mass.), turning and shooting for the score.

Quinnipiac keeper Jillian Kelley (Simsbury, Conn.) had one save in her 61 minutes of play in the game, with a strong defensive effort in front of her ld by Meagan McLoughlin (Rocky Hill, Conn) and Kate Ahearn (Danbury, Conn.). Sophomore back-up keeper Kendra Margulies (Weston, Mass.) saw 29 minutes of action in the game, but did not face a shot.

The Bobcats return to action Friday when they host Canisius at 3 p.m.