GRANTHAM, Pa. - Sloane Adams scored back-to-back goals to end the first-half and No. 1 Messiah field hockey soared past the Eagles of Juniata College 7-0 on Wednesday night. The Falcons led by four at the break, and six different Messiah players tallied a goal on the night.
 
Gehman Gets It Going
After four unsuccessful shots to begin the game, the Falcons threatened in the 14th minute as they earned a penalty corner. Taylor Holt sent it in to Karalyn Schmidt at the top of the circle, who put the ball near the cage for a waiting Carissa Gehman, who redirected it past the keeper for the score. The goal was the senior's team-leading sixth of the season.
 
Taylor Wiederrecht would score just five minutes later, and Gehman was in on the action again as she sent a hard centering pass in front of the cage that Wiederrecht got a stick on and tipped in to give the Falcons a 2-0 lead.
 
Adams on the Attack
Messiah added two more goals before halftime, both coming from junior Sloane Adams, who has already equaled her scoring total from last season. The first one came at the 22:53 mark, as Adams beat the keeper to the left post after gathering a loose ball near the goal. Wiederrecht dished out the second score with a centering pass the Adams was able to tip in to build Messiah's lead to 4-0. That score would hold until the break, as the Falcons went to halftime having taken ten shots and holding the Eagles without an attempt.
 
Falcons Fly to Easy Finish
The second-half was very similar to the first, with Messiah controlling possession on the attacking end for the majority of the time. Juniata was able to get two shots on goal in the period, but backup Messiah goalie Megan Bomba was able to turn both aside after enteting at halftime.
 
In the half, the Falcons earned scores from Kristin Donohue, Logan Ryan, and Kaylor Rosenberry to push the lead to 7-0. Emily Schillinger and Kristin Musser each picked up assists on the second-half goals for their first points of the year.
 
The Falcon bench was especially impressive, tallying four goals on four shots, as well as dishing out three assists.
 
Next Up
The Falcons will look to continue early-season momentum on Saturday when they travel to perennial rival and No. 4 in the nation The College of New Jersey. Game time is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.