Messiah's Goals:  1-0  |  2-0

Buffalo, NY - Messiah women's soccer scored a goal in each half and survived windy conditions to earn a 2-0 shutout over Montclair State on Sunday afternoon. The win pushed the No. 6-ranked Falcons into the NCAA Sectional Semifinals next weekend where they will face Middlebury College. The Panthers defeated Stevens Institute of Technology by an identical 2-0 score this evening.

Messiah's win also moved them to them to 19-2 overall, and they've posted seven-straight shutouts.

"I thought we battled hard and really came away with a solid effort," Messiah head coach Scott Frey said, commenting on the win. "With the wind being as challenging as it was, I thought our girls did a tremendous job to put together a great effort from start to finish."

The crosswind certainly wreaked havoc on both teams' play, though it was the Falcons who managed to hold more territory and impose their will on the game. In the 32nd minute they scored the game-winner, and it was set-up by a foul on the Red Hawks near the left sideline. Lilly Shover sent the free-kick to the center of the goal, and Kayla Deckert jumped to redirect it through; Deckert's header went straight down initially, but the high bounce tucked inside the left post for the 1-0 lead.

Messiah outshot the Red Hawks 9-0 in that first-half, and they finished with a 16-4 advantage shots overall. In the second-half the wind continued to impact the play, and some frustration on the part of Montclair State's Jennie Hornstra soon boiled over. She picked up a yellow for language in the 50th minute and, less than eight minutes later, she picked up her second yellow on a hard foul. That dropped the Red Hawks down to 10 players and allowed the Falcons to dominate possession in the final stretch. In the 82nd minute Messiah found their second goal, and it came by way of a brilliant one-on-one effort by Marisa Weaver. She was played down the middle of the field against the run of play, and she traveled 30 yards before beating one defender and rifling a shot past keeper Molly Barrow.

The goal for Weaver was the 22nd of her season, and Messiah soon finished with their 16th shutout of the season.

"We couldn't be more excited to get away with a win, and earn more time together," Frey said. "These girls fought hard to get through this weekend and we'll look forward to resting up and getting ready for the next time out."

As mentioned, Messiah will now face Middlebury next weekend in the Sectional Semifinals. Williams and Johns Hopkins will also compete in that pod, and fans are encouraged to follow GoMessiah.com for an announcement about location and time for these games next weekend.