For the third week in a row, Emily Beans emerged as a difference maker for Colorado College.

Beans snapped a scoreless deadlock in the 69th minute of play on Friday, fueling a 1-0 victory over East Carolina University at Stewart Field that kept the Tigers in the hunt for their first-ever regular-season title in Conference USA. 

CC, now 7-1-1 at home for the season, improved to 9-5-1 overall and 5-2 in C-USA play to remain tied for second place and within a game of league-leading Central Florida, which won 2-1 at Rice University on Friday night.

“I thought every block of our team was effective today,” head coach Geoff Bennett said after sophomore goalkeeper Caitlin Hulyo backstopped her sixth and the team's seventh shutout of the season. “We were dangerous offensively, although we still need to work on finishing. But everyone's involved and everyone's energetic. I'm just really happy with the overall attitude and demeanor of the team right now.”

Hulyo needed to make only two saves as Colorado College out-shot the visiting Pirates, 8-5-2 overall and 3-4 in conference play, by a 21-9 margin overall. 

Beans took a throw-in pass from junior midfielder Meredith Smith off the right sideline, made a quick cut toward the middle and took a quick shot from the top of the box that appeared to glance off a defender and handcuff ECU keeper Jen Kurowicki before rolling into the net midway through the second half. 
 
The tally was Beans' team-leading sixth of the season and the 30th of her collegiate career. She now has scored the game winner in CC's last three victories, on consecutive Fridays, as the Tigers bumped their record to 7-1 in weekend openers. They resume their current five-game home stand with a contest against Marshall University at 2 p.m. (MT) Sunday.