CLARKSVILLE - Austin Peay State University women's soccer team moved into uncharted territory with a 2-0 win against Chattanooga, Sunday, at Morgan Brothers Soccer Field.

In tying the program's longest winning streak (four games, set during the 2007 season), the Lady Govs improved to 4-0, extending the program's best ever start. Chattanooga fell to 1-3 with the loss.

Going into the season, head coach Kelley Guth expected to see a number of freshmen contribute immediately. The extent of their contributions was put on display in Sunday's win.

Freshman forward Emily Kink scored the game's first goal in the 12th minute, off an assist by freshman Tatiana Ariza. Four minutes later, freshman Natalia Ariza was the beneficiary of a combination play from Tatiana Ariza and Kink to score the game's final goal.

"We expected that (the Arizas) would make an impact," Guth said, "I'm excited with the way our team has embraced them, along with the other incoming freshmen that are on the field. It's really coming together and the stats show it. The whole group is a lot stronger than it was last season and you can tell that."

As the game progressed, it turned into a physical matchup in every aspect. The 8-5 foul count, which favored Austin Peay, was not indicative of the game's physicality. At one point, there were three consecutive stoppages for injuries in a five minute span.

This type of match would have been a struggle for some of Guth's former teams, but this group of Lady Govs offers a variety of players with flexibility to play a number of positions. For a team that had only one sub for much of the 2009 slate, Guth played 18 players in the match - including freshman goalkeeper Haylee Shoaff for the entire second half.

"In order for us to accomplish our season goal," Guth said, "we have to improve every game and continue to put the pieces together. I think we're doing that so far. We've had a number of players step up and we got to play a lot of different people today. It's exciting for our team and we want to be able to continue to get better."

Kink led Austin Peay with eight shots, five on goal, while Joceline Quiceno and Natalia Ariza each had three shots. Austin Peay outshot Chattanooga 18-7. The Lady Mocs' keeper Taylor Mangrum made eight saves.

The Lady Govs return to action on the road at the Troy Invitational with a noon, Friday, match against South Alabama.

-AP-