CAMDEN, N.J. - The No. 3 Messiah women's soccer team held a 1-0 lead at halftime of Wednesday afternoon's match with Rutgers-Camden thanks to a Julia Martin header goal in the 14th minute. After Jenna Skurcenski cleared a potential equalizer off the goal line early in the second half, Messiah put on a goal-scoring clinic late in the contest to earn a 5-0 shutout of the Scarlet Raptors. Messiah collected second half goals from Kylie Firestone, Ella Arace, and Lydia Ring as well as an own goal to produce their highest scoring match of the season to date.

With the victory, Messiah moves to 6-0-1 on the season and will be back in action on Saturday when they travel to Dallas, Pa. for another big test against the No. 2 Misericordia Cougars. The top-three match is set to kick off at 1:00 p.m.

Falcons Strike First
After the Scarlet Raptors attempted the first shot of the contest in the fifth minute, a rip from beyond the box that sailed well high of the goal, Messiah notched their first two shots of the contest. Rachael Tirjan missed wide in the ninth minute and Kenzie Spodnik had a shot saved in the 10 minute.
 
The Falcons would get on the board, on the second of two corners in a two-minute span. Playing from the left side, Kenzie Spodnik curled a corner toward the back post. Julia Martin skied for the header, connecting with the delivery and tucked her shot under the crossbar for a 1-0 Messiah lead in the 14th minute. The tally was the first of Martin's first career goal.
 
In the middle of the first half, Messiah had chances to double their lead. Hannah Adair ripped a right-footed shot from just outside the top of the box that rattled off the underside of the crossed bar and was cleared away by the Scarlet Raptors. Just moments later, Korine Kovach slipped a through ball to Kristina Akselsen. Her attempt went just wide of the left post.
 
The Falcons had plenty of other chances taken away from them with four offside whistles in the first half alone.
 
Second-Half Scare
Rutgers-Camden was on the attack early in the second half with two shots in the first 10 minutes. The first attempt of the half was the most dangerous. The Scarlet Raptors pushed possession forward and pulled Ava Wert off of her line. The Scarlet Raptors' Josie Jackson-Conner got behind Wert and took a shot on an open goal. Luckily for the Falcons, Jenna Skurcenski was there, hustling from the right side of the box to get a foot on the shot and clear it off of the goal line.
 
Lid Comes Off
The Falcons broke things open across the final half hour of the match with four goals to earn the 5-0 victory. Kylie Firestone started the goal avalanche by picking up a loose ball on the left side and connecting for a 2-0 lead.
 
Firestone's goal came in the 66th minute and was her first tally of the year.
 
Messiah's lead went to 3-0 in the 72nd minute thanks to an own goal.
 
The Falcons then connected on two goals in a 28-second span in the 87th and 88th minutes. First it was Ella Arace from the left side inside the box going to the near post for her first career goal. Just moments later, Korinne Kovatch slipped a ball to Lydia Ring in nearly the same spot for a 5-0 Messiah lead.
 
With two tallies in just 28 seconds, Arace and Ring's scores ties for the eighth-fastest consecutive goals in Messiah women's soccer program history.
 
What's Up Next
With the victory, Messiah moves to 6-0-1 on the season and will face another tough test this weekend when they travel to Misericordia to take on the Cougars at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. The Falcons and Cougars squared off last season with Misericordia earning a 3-1 victory on Shoemaker Field. It was the first time Messiah allowed three goals in a single game since the 2008 season. The Cougars are currently ranked No. 2 in the country, making Saturday's match Messiah's third against a top-10 team this season.