SAN ANTONIO – Alicia Cooper may have had the greatest five-minute stretch of soccer anywhere in the world Sunday, as she needed about that much time to score a natural hat trick in a 3-2 win at Incarnate Word.
 
Cooper's first three goals of the season – all within a span of 4 minutes, 9 seconds – gave the Lady Panthers (1-1-1) their first victory of 2015, and their second win in as many seasons over Incarnate Word (2-2).
 
The Lady Panthers withstood a barrage of shot attempts from the Cardinals before Cooper opened the scoring by rebounding a shot from teammate Bailey LaBauve that had been blocked, and firing a shot past UIW's Karly Brightwell in the 38th minute.
 
The Cardinals had recorded eight shots prior to Cooper's rebound and goal, but only one required PVAMU goalkeeper Dominique Dillon to make a save.
 
In the 41st minute, Cooper stretched the lead to 2-0 when took a pass from Courtney Aleman and fired home a shot from 13 yards out into the upper-right hand corner of the goal. One minute and five seconds later, Cooper was at it again, this time taking a pass from Khalisha Bond and chipping a shot past Brightwell.
 
The three-goal margin the Lady Panthers took into halftime proved to be just enough cushion, as the Cardinals came out in all-out attack mode in the second half. Abigail Koenigs scored goals in the 60th and 86th minute to trip PVAMU's lead to one, but the Lady Panthers held on for the victory.
 
With the urgency of erasing the lead Cooper gave the Lady Panthers, the Cardinals out-shot PVAMU 16-1 in the second half and 25-7 for the game. However, only four of Incarnate Word's shots found their mark, as Dillon made two saves in the game.
 
PANTHER KICKS

• Cooper's hat trick was the second of her Prairie View A&M career, and first since a 4-3 victory at Mississippi Valley State on Oct. 12, 2014.
• The three-goal game against Incarnate Word was Cooper's fourth multi-goal game of her Prairie View A&M career.
• The Panthers have reached .500 or better three matches into the season for the first time since 2004, when the team defeated three SWAC opponents.
• The Lady Panthers have never opened a season with a record of 1-1-1 or better when playing teams from outside the Southwestern Athletic Conference.
• Cooper's three goals in 4:09 is being examined to see where it ranks among the fastest natural hat tricks in NCAA Division I history. The fastest natural hat trick was scored by current U.S. Women's National Team player Abby Wambach, when she scored three goals in 2:02 for Florida against Arkansas in 2000.

 
The Lady Panthers return to action next Sunday when they visit San Marcos to face the Texas State Bobcats. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
 
Prairie View A&M opens its home schedule Friday, Sept. 11, when they Lady Panthers host nearby NAIA opponent St. Thomas–Houston at 7 p.m.
 
TWEET of the GAME