By Cody Swartz, GoMessiah.com reporter
Gettysburg, PA — It was deja vu all over again for Messiah field hockey Tuesday afternoon, as for the second time in as many games junior Kourtney Ehly registered a hat trick and the Messiah defense recorded another shutout in a 4-0 win at Gettysburg College.
The win kept the Falcons (12-0) undefeated on the season, helping Messiah — ranked atop the latest NFHCA/Kookaburra Top 20 Poll — dispatch its sixth ranked opponent of the year. Gettysburg (9-4) entered Tuesday's match ranked 15th in the same poll.
“We've played better games before,” said Jan Trapp Messiah head coach, “but any win on the road is a good win. Our timing was a little off, but we had a few players – particularly (junior) Kourtney Ehly – rise to the occasion, and our defense played really well. I was happy to have a shutout, especially since Gettysburg College is a pretty good team.”
Ehly – who took over senior Katie Love's role as the team's leading scorer with her latest showcase – notched her 12th, 13th, and 14th goals of the year. Along with a goal by last year's All-American Julie Barton, the Falcons won a tough battle against one of the nation's top teams.
“(Kourtney) was really on,” Trapp said. “She has been such a wonderful surprise. Every time she gets on the field, she is better. And Katie Love (seven shots) has been playing really well too. (Senior) Jenna Max and (junior) Amber Philpot have been responsible for bringing the ball up, and they've done a tremendous job. This group works so well together as a team.”
The Falcons didn't get on the board until close to halftime, but that didn't stop Messiah from dominating the time of possession and ball control early on. The Falcons first scored on Ehly's tip-in goal at the 27:10 mark, going on to out shoot the Bullets 11-0 in the first half and 26-3 for the game. Trapp's club also notched a 19-3 advantage in penalty corners.
Despite the wait for the initial score, Trapp said she was confident it would come.
“With Albright, we didn't score until almost 30 minutes into the game,” she said. “It's not as if we didn't put a lot of pressure on goal. We did, and we knew eventually it would break through.”
Ehly added another chip shot for a goal at the 32:39 mark, her second of the day, with each coming off an assist from freshman defender Natalie Ziegler. Ehly's second tally gave the Falcons a 2-0 halftime lead, extending the team's streak to 27 straight games without trailing at halftime.
“It's a great confidence booster for sure,” Trapp said of being ahead at the intermission. “The girls wouldn't let an early goal knock them out of it. We have gone down early before and come back from it. This team is pretty solid and they don't panic. They're pretty confident of their skills.”
Messiah's defense then stepped up in the second half, going on to register the team's third straight shut out and fifth in the last six games. The Bullets came close to scoring early in the period, but senior goalie Ashley Mowery registered her only two saves of the day, keeping the blanking intact.
With the result, Mowery extended her streak of minutes played without allowing a goal to 314, the equivalent of over four full games.
“Any coach will tell you that the more offensive pressure you put on is less pressure on your defense, which puts more pressure on the other team,” Trapp said. “Normally the team that will crack is the team under more pressure.”
That clearly wasn't Messiah on Wednesday, as the Falcons – who have outshot their opponents 105-6 in the last four games – got a strong performance from both sides of the ball.
“Our defense played well, the (midfielders) have recovered so well, the forwards have recovered so well, and it's just been a lot of constant pressure from our offense,” said Trapp.
Halfway through the second half, Barton scored an unassisted goal at the 60:02 mark, her sixth of the season, and Ehly followed just over a minute later with her third of the day, at the 61:10 mark. Ehly's goal was off a pass from the right side from freshman forward Emily Hursh.
Wednesday's win gave Messiah its sixth victory over a team ranked in the nation's top 20 and sixth by shutout, keeping the team's slate clean at 12-0. Trapp, a Hall of Famer, has seen enough to give her team high praise at this point in the season.
“This is a very special team,” said Messiah's 37-year head coach. “They work together well. You don't often get a team that goes 12-0. We've survived a very wicked schedule. Normally if you come away from the tough part with just one or two losses, that's good, but to come away with all wins is amazing. The girls have just stepped up in the big games, and we've shown that we can play with any team in the nation.”
Trapp added, “This team is right up there (with the best I've ever coached). We have had some wonderful teams throughout the years, but this team has just been really special. We've been trying to get through to them that you have to have fun, you have to enjoy themselves, and (the team) is truly enjoying themselves right now.”
Messiah will take the field again this Saturday, as the team returns to Commonwealth Conference play in hosting Widener University, a team coming off three straight wins.
As part of the school's Centennial Homecoming Weekend, the Falcons will start things off at 1 p.m. on Anderson Field.
“It's homecoming weekend, breast cancer awareness day, senior day, and with all the activities going on, I expect the girls to be psyched up,” said Trapp. “One person seems to spark everyone else, and then everyone sparks each other. The girls always seem to play better on homecoming. I expect us to play well.”
