HARROGATE, Tenn. – The University of North Georgia women's soccer team picked up its second road win of the season in a decisive 4-2 victory at Lincoln Memorial Wednesday afternoon. Freshman forward Sam Cottle scored a hat trick in the win as the Nighthawks move to 4-1-0 on the season. 

Cottle, a rookie from LaGrange, Ga., scored her first collegiate goal a week prior in a 7-0 drubbing of Young Harris. When Cottle arrived in Dahlonega, expectations about how the newcomer might be able to contribute were tempered. She was a prolific scorer and surefire great player in high school, but a freshman seeing significant minutes in their first season is certainly no guarantee. 

Instead, Cottle has impressed many in her first five games as a collegiate striker. Most importantly, she's impressed the UNG coaching staff. 

In a 2-1 loss to (then unranked, now No. 24) Florida Tech, Cottle was inserted into the game off the bench when the Nighthawks needed to break a scoreless tie. 

On Wednesday, Cottle was again tasked with entering a game in which neither team had scored yet. She changed that quickly. 

Subbing into the contest in the 24th minute, Cottle scored the second goal of her career just 46 seconds later. As senior midfielder Darby Olive intercepted a pass and twirled around a Railsplitter defender, Cottle charged the net to get in position for a cross. Olive's ball bounced into the box and like a lightning bolt Cottle appeared in front of the net ready to strike. 

She smoked the ball into the back of the net to make it 1-0 UNG. 

Cottle would remain in the game, notching another goal minutes before halftime. 

This time it was junior midfielder Alex Clark with an opportunity to cross a ball through the box from the far side. Clark just slipped the ball past the defender into a congested area surrounding the six-yard box. While the ball was deflected by a Railsplitter, it went near Cottle. The freshman put on the brakes to halt her momentum, reached her right foot way back to get to the ball and put just enough on it to firmly send it past the keeper. 

The Nighthawks took a 2-0 lead into the halftime break. 

Out of the break, Cottle got busy in minutes. Her first-half play earned a second-half start and she did not disappoint. 

After a takeaway near midfield, Cottle found the ball coming her direction after a battle for possession. She turned and chased after it, tapping it over her defender's head in the process. As she gave chase again, it became clear Cottle would have another shot on goal. 

She didn't even bother to take another touch. As Cottle reached the ball in the middle of the penalty box, she neatly yet firmly chipped the ball over LMU goalkeeper Bente Latenstein, securing the hat trick. 

Cottle becomes just the second Nighthawk freshman since 2017 to score a hat trick in her debut season.

With a 3-0 lead, UNG was not satisfied. Senior midfielder Meghan O'Brien added UNG's fourth goal of the game in the 66th minute, marking her first goal of the season. O'Brien, who transferred to UNG from Georgia Southern last season, has now scored four times since joining the Nighthawks. 

LMU was able to find two goals of its own in the 68th and 81st minutes, but the Nighthawks held on to the finish line to secure a win in another early road test this season. 

Now UNG will return home on Saturday, Sep. 21 for its first Peach Belt Conference match against USC Aiken. The Nighthawks will celebrate Family Day during the game as they open PBC play from the UNG Soccer Field at Lynn Cottrell Park at 4:30 p.m.