The Friday night lights at Valley Fields bring out the best in sophomore forward Christy Zwolski.

In each of the Golden Eagles' three home games this season, Zwolski has raked in the points — scoring goals, handing out assists and leading the women's soccer team to victory.

There was the game-winner Zwolski scored against heavily-favored Illinois in the home opener Aug. 26.

For an encore performance the following week, Zwolski forced the Drake Bulldogs into submission with two goals in a 2-1 overtime victory. And there she was again last Friday night, blazing down the field past the South Florida Bulls, adding two more goals and an assist to her Valley Fields resume.

"She's so hard to stop," said head coach Markus Roeders of Zwolski. "She really has a nose for the goal."

While that nose has served her well at home games so far this year, Zwolski's size may be her biggest asset.

Standing 5-foot-2 in cleats, Zwolski knows that opposing teams may, literally and figuratively, look over her when playing the Golden Eagles.

"Size isn't that big of a deal to me," Zwolski said. "But I can definitely see how other teams might overlook me. I would if I were them."

In refusing to acknowledge the presence of Marquette's current top scoring threat, opponents are playing right into the Golden Eagles' hands.

Four minutes into the second half, junior forward Meghan Connelly crossed a pass into a crowded Bulls' box.

Lost in all the commotion was Zwolski, who found the ball and then pounded it past USF goalkeeper Casey Garrett for her first goal of the night.

"She accelerates quickly," Roeders said. "They think they have her covered, and then she cuts back and goes the other way."

Usually Zwolski does her accelerating on the ground, but for her next goal, she had to go skyward to knock in a header off a cross from senior midfielder Julie Thompson.

"It was a great header. Christy's really good in the air," Thompson said. "I think it's a misconception that only tall players are good in the air."

But Zwolski pays no mind to misconceptions.

All she's focused on at the moment is keeping up her conditioning and continuing to put pressure on opposing defenses.

"I'm just going to keep going at people," Zwolski said.

They'll never see her coming.

This article was published in The Marquette Tribune on September 20, 2005.