Grantham, PA - No. 4 William Smith scored a single goal in each half and displayed a veteran poise in a shutout of No. 3 Messiah on Saturday afternoon. Sarah Olick-Sutphen and Evie Manning connected for the Herons, and a strong full-field effort kept the Falcons from registering a shot on goal.
The win moved William Smith to 4-0, while Messiah fell to an even 2-2.
Both teams proved their high rankings early on, as neither team could generate much offense in the opening stages of the game, with only one shot coming in the first 28 minutes of play.
William Smith's aggressive and constant pressure in their attack paid off in the 29th minute, when Cailin MacLean stole possession from
Lydia Eichorn near the circle in the midfield. She pushed forward with two touches and then put the ball square to Sarah Olick-Stuphen five yards off the 18, where she made three touches and a hard cut to elude her defender and rifle a left-footed shot that went beyond
Sara Yunez's dive and inside the right post.
The goal put the Falcons in a deficit for the third time in four games thus far in 2016, but they hoped to demonstrate the same resiliency they displayed at Johns Hopkins on Wednesday night. In that game, the Falcons responded with two goals in the second-half to come back and take the victory.
Unfortunately, the Herons' were poised to collect the decision. The Falcons managed to get just two shots off in the remainder of the half, and neither was on frame as the visitors went to the break with a 1-0 advantage. Despite the deficit, the Falcons' defense managed to hold the Herons to just two total shots in the first-half.
The second-half began similarly to the first, as both teams continued to show their prowess on the defensive side of the ball. The Herons did have a few opportunities early, including a shot by Kara Shue at the top of the box that was saved by Yunez.
In the 66th minute, with plenty of time for Messiah to still even the score, the Herons tallied their second goal of the game. Evie Manning possessed the ball near midfield and attacked straight toward the top of 18-yard line. With the Messiah defense hesitating in coverage for a moment, Manning found enough space to rip a shot from just inside the box that dove below Yunez's reach.
Despite the Falcons' remaining effort to get on the board they failed to register a shot in the second-half. The Falcons'
Kate Shults and
Maggie Frey registered the only two shots in the game, a season-low. Much of the credit was due to the Herons' back line as they suffocated the Messiah forwards, among them
Marisa Weaver and
Brooke Firestone, at any opportunity.
As noted above, the loss dropped the Falcons to 2-2 on the year, marking the first time Messiah has lost two decisions in their first four games since 1998.
Messiah hopes to bounce back when they take the field on Thursday, Sept. 15 when they host Eastern University at 7:00 p.m.
