GRANTHAM, Pa. - The No. 12 Messiah field hockey team trailed the Lebanon Valley Dutchmen 1-0 heading into the fourth quarter on Wednesday night, but Emily Knepp scored a pair of goals in the final 11 minutes of the game to help the Falcons earn a 2-1 come-from-behind victory. Messiah held a distinct advantage in possession and territory throughout the match, but it was the Dutchmen that struck first in the third quarter on their first shot of the night off the stick of Abbie Keath.

Messiah continued to battle and found a pair of goals from Knepp that looked nearly identical to one another. Knepp sitting on the back post, waiting for centering passes from Jennie Young on the equalizer and Taylor Wiederrecht on the game winner. The two-goal game was the first multi-goal performance of Knepp's career. She had scored five career goals prior to Wednesday night.

The Falcons outshot the Dutchmen 17-2 on the night, putting 10 shots on goal compared to just one for the Dutchmen.

Quiet Start
On a cold night in Grantham, the Falcons and Dutchmen battled through the first half with Messiah owning possession. The Falcons earned their first penalty corner 3:36 into the contest that saw Mackenzie Brubaker take a shot but her attempt went wide. 

Messiah didn't let Lebanon Valley hold the ball long, earning another penalty corner in the 9th minute. The Falcons spent nearly three minutes near Lebanon Valley's goal, adding four shots to the box score with one going wide, two getting blocked, and one getting saved. 

The Falcons earned another two penalty corners and two shots to close out the first period with a 7-0 advantage in shots and a 4-0 advantage in corners. 

The second period was quieter than the first as the Falcons recorded just one shot, coming 32 seconds into the period. Messiah did earn another four corners in the second period but couldn't connect to find a good shot. 

Here Come The Dutchmen
After failing to record a shot in the first half, the Dutchmen came out ready to go in the third period. It was the Falcons who had the early opportunity, earning a corner 35 seconds into the second half. Hannah Palm took a shot on the corner but her attempt was saved and Lebanon Valley responded. With a fleet of Dutchmen sprinting down the field, Abbie Keath subbed in and ran into the play, finding herself with a goal 56 seconds into the third period. 

The Falcons had a close chance in the 38th minute when Mackenzie Brubaker ripped a shot off a corner. Brubaker's attempt beat the goalie but couldn't get past Kaylea Garman who was there to make the defensive save. Messiah added another shot off a corner in the 42nd minute but this one was saved by Nikki Willi. 

The Dutchmen earned their only corner of the night with 22 seconds remaining in the third period. Lebanon Valley took a shot off the play but their attempt was saved. 

Knepp Downs The Dutchmen
Trailing 1-0, the Falcons were in need of some fourth period magic and Emily Knepp was ready for it all. In the 50th minute, Jennie Young slotted the ball to Emily Knepp who found the equalizer to make it 1-1. With momentum on their side, Messiah kept things going as they struck again in the 55th minute. Taylor Wiederrcht had the assist this time, passing it in to Emily Knepp who ripped the ball to the back of the cage, tallying the game-winner and her second goal of the game, giving Messiah a 2-1 lead. 

Messiah added two more shots and two more penalty corners in the closing minutes of the period, looking for some insurance goals, failing to find them, but not needing them in the end. 

What's Up Next
The Falcons are now 11-4 and 5-0 in the conference, earning the top spot in the conference standings. Messiah will travel to Albright College on Oct. 26 at 5:30 p.m. to continue MAC Commonwealth play.