Grantham, PA – It wasn't prettiest of the wins, but it was a win nonetheless as No. 15 Messiah College overcame a late deficit to edge No. 17 Mary Washington 7-6 on Saturday afternoon. Ida Ehrhardt scored three goals and Allie Colson notched two goals—including the game-winner—as Messiah moved to 2-1 on the season. The Eagles fell to 3-2.
 
From Front to Back, and Back to Front
The Falcons and Eagles fought through cold temperatures and high winds from start to finish, and their combined 40 turnovers kept the game moving at a choppy pace. With the winds contributing in a large way to the back-and-forth play, the Falcons saw a 5-3 second-half lead turn into a 6-5 deficit with 10:57 left to play. On the ensuring draw control Ehrhart grabbed possession and Messiah found a great look from Jamie Bishop near the right post. Her shot was saved, but Ehrhardt grabbed the groundball and quickly found Jenna Stover on a streak in front of the cage for the game-tying score.
 
That was Ehrhardt's single assist of the game and Stover's lone tally of the game, and they couldn't have come at a bigger point.

Winning Time
Just over two minutes after tying the score the Falcons were on their heels when Kathryn Milwicz picked up a yellow card to put the Eagles on the advantage. It was the second card of the game for Milwicz, and one of seven yellows on the afternoon between both teams.
 
Mary Washington came close to take a literal advantage soon after, but a shot by Kelsey Vincent sailed high. She was whistled for the game's final yellow on the same play as her shot was ruled dangerous. That evened the field, but an even larger play was made on the Eagles' next possession when Claire Griffin forced a turnover in the midfield to again shut down the Eagles' attack.
 
With under five minutes to play Allie Colson was awarded a free-position shot on the left side and second hash, and she made good by beating keeper Hanna Ashby through the legs for a 7-6 Messiah lead.
 
A Fitting End
With much of the game being unsettled due to the high winds and less-than-clean play on both sides, the final minute proved fittingly choppy in it's own right. Alexa Dipeso came up with arguably the biggest play of the game when she saved Julia Albert's attempt with 48 seconds to play, and Messiah immediately called timeout to set their clear.
 
But when the teams returned to action the field's clock was stuck on 48 seconds and, when they were finally alerted by scorer's box, the officials had to reset the clock based off the back-up timer. Although the timing was made accurate, the ending was nevertheless intensified as Messiah ran out the final seconds to protect their lead.
 
In the Box
Messiah doubled up the Eagles in shots, 28-14, but 21 of those offerings came in the first 30 minutes of play. That early advantage helped Messiah take a 4-2 lead at the break, with Ehrhardt accounting for three of those tallies.
 
The Falcons' ride was effective throughout the contest as Mary Washington was successful on just 11-24 clear attempts. The midfield fumbles helped the Falcons hold down the Eagles' total shots, and it also helped the Falcons overcome 21 turnovers of their own throughout the afternoon.
 
Next Up
Messiah will stay on home for one more contest on Wednesday, Mar. 8 against No. 11 York College. Game time is set for 4:00 p.m.