Box Score
Gettysburg, PA – No. 11 Messiah College was edged by No. 4 Gettysburg College Saturday, as they dropped a 10-8 decision on the road. The low-scoring affair was the result of gritty defensive efforts by teams, with Gettysburg managing to stall for most of the final ten minutes; the Bullets took a 9-8 lead at the 10:48 mark of the second-half, and added their tenth goal with just a second remaining.
The loss for Messiah evens their record at 1-1, with the match-up with Gettysburg the first of a six-game stretch in which the Falcons with face five teams ranked in the
IWLCA Top 20 Poll.
On Saturday, Messiah got off to a promising start as
Lizzy Keeney put the Falcons up 1-0 after just 4:27 of play. But Gettysburg responded quickly, as Loren Pruitt tied things up just ten seconds later.
Knotted at 1-1, Gettysburg took advantage of some sloppy passing by Messiah as they collected a groundball and went full-field for a quick score. A few minutes later, Lindsey Robinson was the finisher of another sudden attack, as she put the Bullets up 3-1 with 16:09 left in the first-half.
“We were prepared for their 'backer-defense',” Messiah head coach
Heather Greer said.”But we were also making difficult passes and poor decisions. We were passing out of double-teams, but then right back into them. We weren't as sharp as we would like to be.”
As the Falcons were settling in,
Taylor Phillips stepped up big in the cage. She collected six saves in the just the first-half, with many of them coming early on near-post attempts by Gettysburg.
Down 3-1, the Falcons worked back with Keeney at the lead. She scored twice to tie game, the second of which came just after Phillips made a terrific save on a free-position shot by Robinson.
The tie would be short-lived, however, as Gettysburg again responded quickly with a go-ahead goal. This time, it would be from Mandy Buell as she grabbed a pass from Robinson on her run across the cage for the score. The Bullets would take the 4-3 lead into the break.
Messiah committed 13 turnovers in the first-half, as Gettysburg's suffocating defense seemed to stall the Falcons' offense. Nevertheless, Phillips' stellar play and Messiah own defensive efforts set the stage for a thrilling second-half.
“Taylor (Phillips) had a great game, and our defensive played with great anticipation,” Greer said, going on to mention
Maddie Comfort as well. “We needed everyone to be on the same page, and I thought we did that well.”
Gettysburg struck first after the break, but Keeney responded with her fourth goal of the game to make it 5-4. A moment later, the Falcons capitalized on a Gettysburg turnover to find
Cecilia Kjellman in the open field for a dramatic game-tying score.
With the score now even at 5-5,
Claire Stikeleather put the Falcons up 6-5 with an unassisted score near the right post of the Bullets' goal.
The lead came with 23:22 still left to play and, as was the theme throughout, Gettysburg quickly countered. Bridget Kenny did the honors this time just 53 seconds later, her defender in front of the goal and cutting left for a shot across the goal and just by Phillips' reach.
It would the first of three-straight goals for Gettysburg as they took an 8-6 lead with 17:34 left to play.
Now down by two scores, Messiah again fought back. Kiertsen McGreer and
Lizzy Keeney scored goals in a 37-second span, tying the game once more. For Keeney, the goal was her fifth-- the second time is as many games that she's scored five goals this season.
“This was truly a back-and-forth game,” Greer said. “We stayed composed, because we knew we could score. Those two goals late in the second-half showed both our maturity and determination.”
Though determined, Messiah would again relent and see the Bullets take a lead. Kenny did so with her second goal of the game, putting the hosts up 10-9 with 10:48 to play.
With so much time remaining, it seemed inevitable for another score to come; however, Gettysburg managed to stall for the majority of the last ten minutes to hold their lead. With Messiah pressuring at the end, the Bullets scored with a second remaining.
“We worked so hard to make things happen offensively, that it was a challenge for us to turn around and make defensive plays, too,” Greer said. “I think our legs got to us a bit, and their stall made us work. I thought they were off sides at least once, but we weren't able to get possession back.”
The win for Gettysburg moves them to 2-0, with the Saturday decision a quality victory over a ranked Falcons' squad.
“I'm incredibly proud that we have fighters and we work hard,” Greer said. “We know there is no substitution for hard work, and that is what our team is committed to. We believe that battling against top teams will help us grow.”
The Falcons will look to get back into the win column when they host rival Dickinson College on Wednesday, Mar. 6. Game time is set for 7:00 p.m., and will be a rematch of last year's
thrilling 11-10 decision in favor of Messiah.
