Ewing, NJ - The No. 9 Messiah Falcons scored once in the first-half and twice after the break to claim a 3-0 victory in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament over the SUNY New Paltz Hawks. The win vaulted the Falcons into the Elite 8 for the 21st time in program history and the first time since 2010 when they were the National Runner-Up. Lindsay Bower scored an unassisted goal in the 29th minute to break a scoreless tie while Kezia Loht and Carissa Gehman tallied in the second-half to give Messiah the 3-0 victory.
 
Messiah will next take the field on Sunday afternoon against No. 2 The College of New Jersey with a trip to the Final Four on the line.
 
From the opening touch Messiah looked to be in control of the game. The Falcons earned a penalty corner on their first possession, just 63 seconds into the game. That first corner resulted in a shot wide by Carissa Gehman, but it was a sign of things to come. Messiah earned seven penalty corners in the first 28 minutes, but were unable to get on the board.
 
The Falcons finally connected for a goal off their eighth penalty corner of the game in the 29th minute. After being inserted to the top of the circle, the ball found it's way to the stick of Lindsay Bower. Bower created some space for herself by moving to her left and firing a shot that beat the goalie and broke the scoreless tie.
 
Just moments after Bower's goal, New Paltz hustled down into Messiah territory for one of their more dangerous moments of the half. Unfortunately for the Hawks, Messiah cleared the ball out of danger and continued to pressure for the remainder of the period.
 
The Falcons took their 1-0 lead to the break. At the half, Messiah had outshot the Hawks 10-2 and had dominated play, controlling the ball in their offensive third for the majority of the half.
 
After the intermission, Messiah spent most of the second-half searching for an insurance goal. That goal would come in the 59th minute on a two-on-one breakaway for the Falcons. Carissa Gehman carried the ball up the right side of the field with Kezia Loht to her left. When Gehman entered the top of the circle, she fired a shot toward the left post that Loht tapped in for her fifth goal of the year.
 
With Messiah now holding a two-goal lead, New Paltz began searching for a goal even more. This increased pressure by the Hawks led to a more porous defensive line for the final ten minutes. With the Hawks' defense spread out the Falcons capitalized with a long ball ahead to Kezia Loht who looked to be one-on-one with the goalie but she was taken down from behind and Messiah was awarded a penalty stroke. Carissa Gehman calmly stepped up and beat Alayna Wageman, the New Paltz goalie, for the Falcons' third and final goal of the afternoon.
 
As mentioned three different Falcons scored in the contest and Gehman picked up the lone assist. Gehman (8 shots) also led four Falcons who took multiple shots, including Taylor Holt (3), Moriah Pfautz (3), and Lindsay Bower (2).
 
Shelby Landes picked up one save in cage for her fifth shutout of the season – all five shutouts have come in the last eight games.
 
As mentioned, Messiah will next take the field in the "Elite 8" tomorrow afternoon against The College of New Jersey. The game is a rematch of Messiah's Sept. 19 contest against the Lions, a closely contest game that Messiah dropped 1-0 in overtime.
 
The win continues Messiah's hot streak, the Falcons have now won 14 of their last 15 games dating back to the TCNJ loss in the middle of September.
 
On the line in tomorrow's clash with the Lions is a berth to the Final Four. The Lions are looking to get back to the Final Four for the second-straight year after winning the National Championship a year ago, while the Falcons are attempting to make it to their first National Semifinal since 2010. Messiah has been to 14 Final Fours in program history.