LEXINGTON, Va. – The Bridgewater College women's soccer team continued its strong play to start the season with a 5-0 victory Saturday over Birmingham-Southern at the Washington and Lee Classic.

With the victory, the Eagles improve to 4-0 on the season. Bridgewater will face a stern test Sunday afternoon when the Eagles play Centre College. The Colonels, ranked fifth in the nation, defeated Washington and Lee, 2-1, Saturday to improve to 5-0 on the season. The W&L goal was the first scored this season against the Colonels.

After 31 minutes of scoreless play, the Eagles took the lead over Birmingham-Southern (3-2) on a goal by sophomore Bailey Kratz, her second of the season.

The Eagles controlled the play in the first half, holding a 10-4 edge in total shots and a 3-1 margin in corner kicks. Panthers' keeper Katherine Kozera recorded four saves in the opening half.

Bridgewater was even more dominant in the second half, firing off 15 shots while limiting the Panthers to just one shot.

Junior forward Keri Rager added an important insurance goal, her first of the season, to give the Eagles a 2-0 lead in the 61st minute. Sophomore Isabella Krider had the assist on the goal.

The Eagles put the game away two minutes later when Anna Sobus scored off an assist from Katherine Wight, pushing the margin to 3-0.

Bridgewater tallied again in the 78th minute when freshman Maddie Grim scored her first career goal, making the score 4-0.

The Eagles made it 5-0 when Bridget Fabiani, another first-year player, scored in the 85th minute.

The final stats showed the Eagles with a 25-5 advantage in total shots and a 7-1 margin in corner kicks.

The shutout was the third of the season for the Eagles' defense. Hayley Talbott and Alyssa Pearson each recorded one save in the contest to combine for the shutout.