Box Score
Grantham, PA — Messiah kept its unbeaten MAC record in tact Thursday, staying one step ahead of league foe Lycoming College in a game of runs at Anderson Field.
Messiah (8-3, 6-0) scored the game's first five goals, only for Lycoming (6-6, 4-2) to follow with a four-goal surge of its own.
Another four-goal push from the Falcons made it a 9-4 contest on the flip side of halftime, however, and the hosts would control things from there: The Warriors pulled within a 10-8 difference with just under 14 minutes to play, but a three-goal push from Messiah over the game's final 11:30 would salt things away.
“Every year, our game with Lycoming is a battle,” said Heather Greer, Messiah head coach. “It always seems to be an emotional game with a lot of momentum shifts. We tried to stay away from that this year, but unfortunately we were not 100 percent successful.”
It appeared that Greer's club would reach that goal through the first 10 and a half minutes of play, as two scores from senior Jackie Dando ignited the initial 5-0 push. Freshman Rachel Dicksen followed with an unassisted tally at the 25:16 mark, while sophomore Megan Bovenzi dialed in on her own with 23:20 on the game clock.
When freshman Rachel Coyle scored an unassisted score with 19:35 remaining in the first period, it appeared that the Falcons were on their way to a contest similar to its last (a 20-10 win against Manhattanville College).
Simply, it was not to be.
Lycoming responded with four goals over a nine-minute span, winning three straight draw controls to secure possession. The Warriors' Megan McIntyre assisted on the first of those scores and put in the next two, helping Lyco to just a 5-4 deficit minutes before the first half was completed.
Thankfully for Greer and company, Messiah had another big push in its tank.
Bovenzi scored the first and last of what would be a four-goal stretch that sandwiched the intermission, taking a feed from freshman Keri Nickles on the first and another from Dirksen on the last. Dando added her third goal of the game with just 1:49 to play in the first half, while freshman Deb Tam opened the second half with a free position score.
And while Lyco would attempt to make things interesting — the Warriors' McIntyre scored the first of back-to-back goals for the visitors to make it a 10-6 contest — a final Messiah push would keep the climate from getting overly tense. Dirksen began the final 3-0 run off a feed from Coyle at the 11:30 mark, while freshman Meghan Doolittle (unassisted) and Dirksen (Jackie Dando) finished the scoring at 6:11 and 1:23, respectively.
“We definitely started out strong, controlling the game and Jackie Dando was a huge part of that today,” Greer said. “She had a tremendous start and was two for two in the first three minutes of the game. Jackie has had a tremendous week at practice, working so hard and leading so well each day. She really pushed herself to go hard every day as well as pushed her teammates to go beyond what they are comfortable with. Maybe it was her realization that this would be the last time she would play Lyco in regular-season play or maybe it is simply that she is getting healthy again and is finally able to play at 100 percent, but she was awfully good this afternoon.”
Dando finished sharing a game-high three goals (Bovenzi and Dirksen also scored thrice), while Doolittle finished with two scores. Defensively, Messiah was led by senior Jen Venter in cage (seven saves, six in the second period) and classmate Brianne Brennan, who finished with two caused turnovers and three ground balls.
Dando and Bovenzi both scooped three ground balls as well, while Brennan finished with a team-high four draw controls.
“After Lyco gained some momentum offensively and we also realized we were dealing with reffing that we were not use to, we knew we had to adapt and proactively change the way we were playing defense,” Greer said. “Our defense changed and worked effectively and efficiently through the situation, not fouling for the last 10 minutes of the game. I was proud of how (senior) Betsy (Tyson) and Bri led the defense and made this happen. It really showed such a mature side of who they are as athletes.”
With the win, Messiah stays in a deadlock for first place in the conference, as both the Falcons and Elizabethtown College boast unbeaten marks within league play. Messiah will return to the field following a brief Easter break, as the team will travel to Wilkes University next Tuesday. Game time is set for 4 p.m.
