By Cody Swartz, GoMessiah.com reporter
Grantham, PA — Top-ranked Messiah continued its streak of dominance with a second consecutive team shutout Saturday, this one a 7-0 victory over visiting Alvernia University at Messiah's own Anderson Field.
It was the Falcons' first home game in nearly three weeks, following a span of four straight road games for Messiah (8-0), a streak in which the Falcons won all four games, including three over top ranked teams in the nation.
Greeted by a warm display of emotion from the home crowd for Saturday's Commonwealth Conference opener, the Falcons did not disappoint. Messiah played strong field hockey for 70 minutes through a persistent rain, en route to one of the team's most dominating performances of the season.
“Our girls really played well today and I was very pleased with the whole team,” said Jan Trapp, Messiah head coach. “It was just a great performance by everyone.”
Defense was the name of the game early on, as neither team scored for the first 20 minutes of the game. The Falcons finally broke though at the 21:35 mark, as junior midfielder Lauren Tennis took a pass from junior Amber Philpot to give the Falcons a 1-0 lead.
At the 28:59 mark, senior midfielder Emily Sauder drilled a shot to the right corner of the goal that deflected off Crusader goalie Abby Eby for a 2-0 Falcons' lead. Sophomore Emily Hursh scored at the 31:32 mark, with Philpot notching her second assist of the day, to give the Falcons a 3-0 halftime lead.
Messiah didn't slow down once the second half began, scoring twice in the first four minutes for a commanding 5-0 lead. Junior forward Kourtney Ehly scored at the 36:53 mark and Tennis scored off a pass from Ehly at the 38:52 mark, putting things decidedly out of reach for Alvernia (3-4, 0-1).
Senior forward Katie Love scored at the 46:21 mark to give the Falcons a 6-0 lead, with teammate Jenna Max providing the assist. Junior midfielder Kelsey Voight topped off the scoring for the day with a goal at the 68:55 mark, converting Messiah's first penalty stroke of the season.
In all, six different Messiah Falcons scored goals on the day, while Messiah outshot the Crusaders 25-3. When asked about her offense, Trapp said, “At one point, I turned around and said to (my assistant coaches) that this certainly bodes well for the future of Messiah field hockey.”
The defense was also a strong suit of the team, preventing senior goalkeeper Ashley Mowery from a strenuous workload — she finished with two saves on the afternoon.
The Falcons' back line has not allowed a goal since the end of regulation in its 3-2 overtime win at Salisbury University on Sept. 19 — a span of 145 minutes.
“Anytime you have a shutout, it's great for the whole team,” Trapp said. “I thought (Alvernia) really started out strong, but our girls are in great shape, we have great depth on the team, and we were able to just tire them out. Mowery was great in goal today. She played a fine game.”
Coach Trapp was able to play a barrage of her substitutes in the second half, giving nearly everyone on the team a chance to see in-game action. In all, it was a strong performance by a Falcons squad that had not played Alvernia — a new member to the Commonwealth Conference this season — since a 7-4 win on Nov. 11, 2005.
“It's always good to be able to get everyone in the game,” Trapp said. “I know we had a lot of parents there who were hoping to see their kids play, and it was just a great opportunity to get each girl into the game. Everyone played well, and it was great to have all that fan support.”
The Falcons will now enjoy a much-deserved week off, before a home matchup against yet another ranked opponent: William Smith College, ranked 18th in the latest NFHCA/Kookabura Top 20 Poll, will visit Anderson Field next Saturday. Game time is set for 1 p.m.
