RACINE, WIS. – The Minnesota Aurora captured their third consecutive Heartland Division title in a 14-0 victory over RKC Third Coast on Saturday night to end the regular season.
Cat Rapp scored four times for the Aurora (9-0-2), becoming the first player in Aurora history to score four goals in a single match. The 14 goals are tied for the second-most in a match in the USL W League this season.
"It was a business trip for us this weekend," Aurora assistant coach Tom Klecezewski said after the team closed the regular season with two victories in Wisconsin. "Two games, as we continue to prepare for the playoffs. We came focused on our attacking objectives and prepared ourselves for some great opponents coming up."
The conference semifinals and finals will be held next weekend, with host sites to be determined.
Tess Werts scored in the sixth minute and the Aurora continued to pepper the Third Coast net before breaking through with a second goal in the 33rd minute, coming from Giada Zhou. Sage Wimes and Katie Duong scored before halftime,.
After halftime, the Aurora scored seven goals in a 25-minute span. Rapp scored in the 51st and 53rd minutes, Wimes and Lydia Ruppert in the 57th, Rapp again in the 62nd and Kaylie Chambers in the 67th. Rapp recorded her fourth goal in a span of 20 minutes with a 70th-minute strike that made it 11-0.
Morgan Stone found the net in the 74th minute, while Chambers tacked on her second of the night three minutes later in the 77th. Sofia Bush capped the scoring in the 85th minute.