ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- The calendar has yet to roll over to October.

That being said, Sunday's match between the UMSL Tritons women's soccer team and Quincy felt like a must-win match.

A crazy sentiment, yes, but getting back into the win column was paramount for the Tritons, who shut out the Hawks, 1-0, in front of approximately 260 fans.

The win not only improves the overall and GLVC record, but more importantly, it gives the Tritons a little momentum and added confidence going into a new week.

The Tritons head to Rockhurst Friday and William Jewell Sunday, so, in a way, it truly was a must win, as UMSL now sits 4-4 overall and 2-4 in conference play.

At the 21:27 mark of the opening half, Mia Milazzo found the net seconds after taking the pass from teammate Maya Ware: who both displayed superb field vision.

While the offense did its job, the defense is also credited for holding down the fort, per second-year UMSL head coach Maddi Moon.

"It was a good battle. Definitely a back and forth game and we just took advantage of our chances. They are a well-coached team and it's always a battle when we face them. I felt like the defense and [goalkeeper] Paige [Schwartz] played an excellent game and really held us down defensively," said Moon.

Spacing and taking the right touches illuminated the offensive game plan heading into Sunday: two elements Moon wanted to emphasize.

"Our attack ... we were able to get our midfielders involved a bit more and utilize the wide spaces, which we hadn't been doing the last few games," Moon said.

As the team pulls to .500, Moon was asked about her early assessment of the team.

Concluded Moon: " As a whole, I feel like we are making the correct strides. We have to continue getting better and taking risks in the final [offensive] third and getting off the shots."