ROMEOVILLE, Ill. – The Saginaw Valley State University women's soccer team defeated Lewis University today (Sept. 1) 2-0 in their 2011 season opener.

The Cardinals took an early lead in the first half over the Flyers when freshman Cara Cirovski (Windsor, Ontario / St Anne HS) scored her first career goal off a pass from senior Sam Echols (Wolverine Lake, Mich. / Walled Lake Central HS) to give the Cardinals a 1-0 lead.

Freshman Lindsey Arnett (Portage, Mich. / Central HS) extended the Saginaw Valley lead to 2-0 when she found the back of the net just five minutes into the second half of play.  Freshman goaltender Laura Ivezaj (Rochester Hills, Mich.) and the Cardinal defense were able to hold Lewis to only three shots on goal in the match up. Ivezaj is now 1-0 on the season and recorded her first career shutout in a Cardinal uniform.

With the win Saginaw Valley improves to 1-0 on the season, while Lewis falls to 0-1 on the season. The Cardinals will be back in action on Saturday (Sept. 3) when they travel to Wisconsin-Parkside. Game time is scheduled for 1:00 pm.