Junior forward Kayla Butts (Lansdowne, Pa./Bonner-Prendergast) recorded her first career hat-trick as the Lincoln University Women's soccer team defeated Hollins University 6-0 Friday night at Lions Stadium in Lincoln University, Pennsylvania.

The Lions improve to 2-2 on the season while Hollins drops to 0-2

Butts needed just 49 seconds to score her first goal of the season, getting ahead of the field and taking a pass from Samanta Sosa (Roatán, Bay Islands, Honduras/Freedom (Harris-Stowe)) to put the Lions up 1-0 early.  She added her second goal at the 12:41 mark pushing the ball past Hollins keeper Kendra Rich, giving the Lions a 3-0 lead.  Butts completed the hat-trick just four minutes into the second half, scoring just six seconds following a corner kick.  Bria Garcia (Bowie, Md./Bowie) and Serena Melendrez (Las Cruces, N.M./Las Cruces) recorded assists on the play.

The hat-trick was only the 14^th ever in program history as Butts becomes just the sixth Lions player in school history to achieve the milestone.  Tamara Greene (Piscataway, N.J./Piscataway) was the last Lincoln player to accomplish the feat, doing it in a game last season.  Two former players Stephanie Anderson (2008-11) and Tara O'Brien (2011-14) have the most hat-tricks in school history with four apiece.

Diana Martinez (Kissimmee, Fla./St. Cloud) added two first half goals, giving her a team-leading four on the season.  Like Butts' first goal, Martinez also scored her first goal of the game on a breakaway; taking a pass from Jasmide Bernard (Lancaster, Pa./McCaskey) and kicking pass the Hollins goalkeeper at the 6:48 mark.  She added a second goal at the 17:59 mark with Cedar Davidson (Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada/Aurora) recording the assist on the play.

Lincoln's final goal came in the 61^st minute during the second half as freshman Alana Ward (Holly Springs, N.C./Trotwood Madison (Ohio)) knocked one in after battling in front of the net with a couple of Hollins players.  Ward was playing in the forward position for the second consecutive game after serving as the Lions backup goaltender in Lincoln's first two contests.

Lions goaltender Lena Rodriguez (Lockport, Ill./Joliet Catholic Academy) earned her third career shutout with the win, recording one save on the night, a long shot on net from HU's Miranda Springston.   It was the only shot on the night for the Hollins squad.  Lincoln outshot Hollins 25-1 (12-1 on goal).  The Lions also tied a school record with ten corner kicks in the game, equaling the mark set in 2009 against Valley Forge Christian College (now University of Valley Forge).

The women's soccer team returns to action on Sunday September 10, 2017 when they travel to North Carolina to take on Chowan University.  Kickoff is set for noon.