Grantham, PA – On a brisk, clear night at Messiah College on Saturday, the Blue Jays of Johns Hopkins University handed the Hornets of Lynchburg College their first and only defeat of the season in the second of two Third Round matchups for the evening.
With the temperatures dropping rapidly, the play between the teams started heating up. The Blue Jays (18-4-1) and Hornets (20-1-3) traded early chances in first half, with each narrowly missing opportunities for an early and possibly disheartening lead.
Lynchburg, controlling the tempo for a majority of the game's opening six minutes, looked poised to break through first. The Hornet's Angela Bosco sent a shot from 16 yards out just over the crossbar just 1:17 into the contest. Two corner kick opportunities in the next three minutes had the Hornet's knocking on the door, but they would have nothing to show for it.
Opportunities on both sides of the field had the fans on the edge of their seats. A shot just high and wide by the Jays' Hannah Kronick drew a few groans from the crowd, as did a shot and save at the opposite end of the field.
“I thought we played fantastic today,” Blue Jays' head coach Leo Weil said following the game. “[Lynchburg] is a tough team. They haven't given up a lot of goals this season and, fortunately, we found a way to score.”
It would take Hopkins a bit of time to find a rhythm.
Nonetheless, the Blue Jays' used a solid stretch of possessions in the 18th and 19th minutes to break through the stingy Hornets defense—currently ranked 4th in the nation in goals against average with .320 goals per game.
Kelly Baker gathered a low hard cross from teammate Hannah Kronick and buried a shot to the backside of the net past goalkeeper Audrey Moore and in for a 1-0 lead.
“We've played two games in a row, now, where the teams are nationally ranked in terms of goal allowed,” Weil added. “We put up four against Rowan and now three here tonight against Lynchburg.”
As alluded to, the Jays wouldn't stop there. Nearly 25 minutes later, a Hornets' foul just inside the box resulted in a penalty kick rewarded to the Jays'. Senior defender Taylor Shulte stepped in to take the attempt, only to see her attempt saved and sent out of bounds by Moore.
What seemingly would have been a massive shift in the momentum for the Hornets quickly turned into a 2-0 deficit. The Jays' ensuing corner kick ended up at the feet of junior Jenny Hall, who touched a shot into the left side of the net for just her second goal of the season and maybe the biggest for the Jays this season.
Hall's goal would prove to be the game-winner, but the game would not end without a valiant effort from the Hornets'.
After the half, the Hornets' came out with a strong push. Just two minutes into the half, sophomore Dessi Dupuy got behind the defense controlling the ball and sprinting past two defenders before flicking the ball up and over the goalkeeper to cut the lead in half. Dupuy received a strong, well-placed header from teammate Angela Bosco off a clearing attempt from the Jays' defense.
With the quick tally, the Lynchburg bench erupted in elation, hinting at what may be a frantic 43 minutes to play.
“I thought we just didn't match up with their physicality in the first half,” Hornet's head coach Todd Olsen said after the game. “We came out, though, in the second half, scored a quick goal, and got right back in it. We just battled back and I thought we were in it, again.”
However, just two minutes later an attempted shot from the Jays' Kelly Baker was redirected toward the net by teammate Hannah Kronick off a defender and the outside of the post for a corner kick. The subsequent corner led to a scramble in front of the net as the ball found its way outside of the box where a failed clearing attempt from the Hornets ultimately led to a foul and a free kick for Hopkins. The Jays' Emily Nagourney, standing nearly 30 yards from the Lynchburg goal, drilled the free kick into the upper left corner, setting off a joyous celebration from the Hopkins faithful in attendance.
Nagourney's goal—her second of the season—gave the Blue Jays some much needed assurance as the Hornets continued to keep pressure on the Jays back line for the remainder of the contest.
Despite the 3-1 goals advantage the Blue Jays held at the final whistle, the teams played a matchup that was fairly even down the stretch. Both teams managed eight shots, with corner kicks, saves, and total fouls being very close for each as well.
With the win, the Blue Jays are set for a rematch with the top-ranked Falcons on Sunday at 5 p.m. on Shoemaker Field. In early October, the Falcons traveled to Baltimore to take on Hopkins, downing the Blue Jays 4-0.
The Falcons advance to Regional Final game via 5-0 win over MIT earlier in the day.
“We are looking forward to getting back out there against Messiah,” Weil said when asked what his teams need to do to get ready for the Falcons. “For now, though, we need to rest.”
