Box Score NATCHITOCHES – Northwestern State forward Yanci Johnson knew Sunday would be an emotional day.
 
Johnson, a fifth-year senior from Natchitoches playing her final soccer match in Purple and White, added to the heightened feelings at the Lady Demon Soccer Complex on Sunday afternoon, scoring the first goal of NSU's 2-0 Senior Day victory against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
 
"I'm just so happy," said Johnson, a Natchitoches Central High School graduate. "Everything has been awesome. I've been playing more defensively lately, so it was a surprise (coach George Van Linder) put me up there. I felt it. I knew (the goal) was coming."
 
Johnson took a volley from fellow senior Nikki Saunders up the right flank. Alone on the side, Johnson cut toward the goal before sliding  a shot past a sprawling Megan Downey to give NSU (6-12-1, 3-7-1) a lead just 3:38 into the game.
 
The goal was Johnson's fourth of the season and gave her a career total of 38 points. Prior to the game, Johnson and Saunders were part of an eight-person class that said goodbye prior to their final regular-season game. Joining them were Jackie Strug, Peyton Rector, Alex Rios, Julia Ranalli, Shannon Danku and Chelsea Schaefer.
 
Saunders, with her family from England in attendance, tallied the game's second goal, converting a loose ball near the front of the Islanders net by flipping it past Downey in the 56^th minute.
 
When Johnson broke free less than four minutes into the match, head coach George Van Linder had a good feeling about what was about to transpire.
 
"You had that moment where you go, 'Yanci doesn't miss those,'" Van Linder said. "You could see everything was right. I'm so happy for her to get a goal. To have a shutout and to have two seniors score, it's almost a fairy-tale ending."
 
The emotions didn't stop after the well wishes to the departing seniors. A total of 43 fouls were called in the match, while referees handed out nine total yellow cards.
 
NSU's victory was its second in as many meetings with the Islanders and its second straight shutout after handing Incarnate Word a 1-0 defeat Friday.
 
NSU's first back-to-back Southland Conference victories of the season – and its first overall since defeating Prairie View and Jackson State on Sept. 12 and 14 – also stand as the first two shutouts of freshman goalkeeper Alex Latham's career.
 
Latham followed up her three-save performance Friday by stopping nine shots Sunday. The Islanders managed 15 shots total, while NSU had 11 shots, four of which were on goal.
 
"We're so happy with our seniors," Van Linder said. "They've worked so hard, and they've done so many good things to help our freshmen set that tone, that tradition. They've certainly done it."
 
It capped a run of three wins in the final four games of the season for NSU, which ended its season by falling short of reaching the Southland Conference Tournament.