GENEVA, N.Y. – The No. 17 Messiah women's soccer team score once in each half with tallies from Hannah Adair and Rachael Tirjan to topple the No. 5 William Smith Herons in a heavyweight rivalry game on Saturday afternoon. The Falcons fell into an early hole with the Herons connecting in the 16th minute, but they were the reciepiants of some good fourtante at the end of the firist half when a misplayed ball went right to Adair in the middle of the box for the equalizer.
 
Rachael Tirjan connected on the go ahead score in the 77th minute on a little give and go from Brianna Seip to put the Falcons up 2-1.
 
Messiah held off the Herons for the final 13 minutes to earn their third victory of the season.
 
The Flacons will be back in action on Wednesday when they host the McDaniel Green Terror at 5:00 p.m. to begin a doubleheader on Shoemaker Field.
 
Herons Strike First
In just the 16th minute of play, William Smith put a shot from the top of the box on the ground toward the right post. The Herons had a player at the top of the six that attempted to redirect the shot. The attempted redirection missed, however it forced Messiah's keeper to stay honest waiting for the touch. Without a touch, the ball had just enough pace to trickle inside the left post for a 1-0 William Smith lead.
 
The Herons seemed to control the territory battle throughout stretches of the first half, but Messiah had chances later in the half.
 
Just in Time
Messiah registered two shots in the middle of the period, with Rachael Tirjan in the 24th minute and Hannah Adair in the 29th minute forcing saves from the Herons' keeper, but it was the final minutes of the first half that provided the highlights for Messiah.
 
In the 44th minute, Jenna Skurcenski had a shot saved, but the rebound remained in play. Just seconds later, Messiah had their best chance when a ball was flipped over the chaos in the box and to Hannah Adair, who was one-on-one with the keeper. Adair's attempt missed up wide right as the keeper quickly approached her.
 
With less than 90 seconds remaining in the half, it looked as if the Herons were going to hold the lead heading into halftime. However, Messiah had a burst in the final seconds of the half. A long cross was cleared out of bounds and the Falcons earned a throw in. With just seconds on the clock, Messiah threw the ball into the box when the Herons' keeper came out to play it at the penalty spot. The delivery went right through her hands and to the foot of a waiting Hannah Adair who hammered the bouncing ball into the open net for the equalizer with just eight seconds remaining in the half.
 
Thanks to the late tally, Messiah leveled the match at 1-1 heading into the second half.
 
Taking the Lead
After scoring to end the first half, Messiah seemed to be on the front foot to begin play after the break. The Falcons registered two shots in the first 15 minutes of the period with Kayla Herr and Rachael Tirjan collecting attempts.
 
In the 73rd minute, Hannah Adair put the first shot on frame of the half, but it was saved. After a Brianna Seip attempt was saved in the 75th minute, Messiah found their moment of the half. William Smith missed a shot wide in the 77th minute and the Falcons quickly pushed forward with Brianna Seip and Rachael Tirjan hustling down the left sideline. In the end it was Seip pushing toward the top of the box and slipping a pass to a streaking Tirjan on the run. Tirjan collected the through ball and buried the feed into the lower left corner of the goal for a 2-1 Messiah lead.
 
The Herons attempted the only shot of the final 13 minutes, sending a free kick over the crossbar in the 88th minute as the Falcons earned the hard-fought 2-1 triumph.
 
What's Up Next
With their win on Saturday, Messiah has now won three-straight matches against William Smith, including the 2019 National Championship Game. The Falcons move to 3-0-1 on the season and will be back in action on Wednesday when they host the McDaniel Green Terror at 5:00 p.m. on Shoemaker Field to begin a soccer doubleheader.