Box Score
Huntington, PA - Messiah College field hockey moved to 4-0 on the season on Wednesday, defeating Juniata College 2-0 on the road in Huntington, Pa. The win was the third straight shutout for the Falcons this season.
The Falcons were propelled by two first half goals in the victory, one each by freshman
Rachel Cox and senior
Natalie Ziegler. The goal for Cox, unassisted, was the first of her career.
“It was great to see Rachel get her first goal,” head coach
Brooke Good said of Cox's goal, which came in the 31st minute of play. “She was at the right place, at the right time to punch the goal in for us. It came at a great time for us to give us an early lead.”
Soon after Cox's goal, the Falcons went up 2-0 on the score by Ziegler. The goal, off a penalty stroke, gave Messiah a commanding advantage just before halftime.
“We've really focused on getting good opportunities, including from our offensive corners,” Good said, reflecting on her team's top-20 ranking of offensive corners per game. “We want to capitalize on those chances, and early one we've been able to convert them into goals.”
Though Messiah did attempt 18 shots on the day, the scoring opportunities seemed limited as Juniata played conservative with their defensive positioning.
“(Juniata) did pack it in on defense, which made it hard for our offensive to find space,” Good said. “Even still, I think our team had great movement on the field and did the best they could.”
Through four games in 2012 the Falcons have scored 13 goals, while their defense has been just as impressive. With just one goal allowed, Messiah entered Wednesday as one of ten teams in the nation with a goals against average of less than one goal per game.
“Our defensive was really strong today, especially in limiting opportunities for Juniata,” Good commented. She couldn't have been more right, as Messiah held Juniata to just four shots in the game—three of which came in the final 15 minutes of play.
“This was a great game for us today,” Good said of the victory. “We prepared well for them, knowing they would be a good team. I'm proud of how we came out to compete.”
For the Falcons, ranked No. 4 in the most recent NFHCA Coaches Top 25 Poll, the preparation will continue this week for a highly anticipated match-up with No. 2 Salisbury University this weekend. Game time is set for 1:00 p.m. on Anderson Field on the campus of Messiah College.
