GRANTHAM, Pa – The Messiah Field Hockey team returned to Anderson Field on Saturday afternoon after two weeks on the road and earned a 3-1 win over William Smith College behind a pair of goals from
Addie Weiler and a goal from
Ellie Lefever. The Falcons took a 1-0 lead in the fifth minute when
Aubrey Clark found
Addie Weiler at the post to slot a ball past the Herons goalie. Messiah held the 1-0 lead until the 41st minute when William Smith found the back of the cage to level the score at 1-1.
Addie Weiler regained the lead for the Falcons with a goal early in the fourth before a corner opportunity three minutes later resulted in an insurance goal from
Ellie Lefever on a 1-2 pass from
Chelsea Carlisle and
Alyssa Lewis.
Addie Weiler led the Falcons with two goals while
Ellie Lefever added one.
Aubrey Clark,
Chelsea Carlisle, and
Alyssa Lewis each tallied an assist.
Joy Lippert made four saves in goal for the Falcons while
Ellie Lefever added a defensive save.
The Falcons return to action on Wednesday, Sept. 30 at 6:00 p.m. when they travel to Rowan University for their final game before conference play begins.
First Half
William Smith was the first on the attack, with a shot on goal in the first minute that resulted in a save for
Joy Lippert. The Falcons then took possession with
Alyssa Lewis firing a shot on frame that was saved by the Herons goalie before Lewis sent a second shot just wide.
Aubrey Clark looked to get Messiah on the board, but her shot was deflected wide. In the fifth minute, Clark found herself in the front of the goal with possession. A spin pass around her defender found
Addie Weiler at the post to give Messiah a 1-0 lead. Much of the first quarter was then played in the middle third, with the teams trading possession but not finding an opportunity to shoot. In the final minute,
Ellie Lefever fired a promising backhand shot but missed just above the corner as Messiah maintained the 1-0 lead.
The back-and-forth play continued into the second quarter before the Falcons earned the first penalty corner of the contest at the 21:12 mark.
Addie Weiler fired a shot on cage, but the William Smith goalie was able to clear the shot. The Herons fired a shot as time expired, but
Joy Lippert made the save in goal to maintain the 1-0 Messiah lead into halftime.
Second Half
Naomi Lyter looked to extend the lead in the early minutes of the second half, firing a shot on cage that was saved by the Herons goalie. As William Smith took possession, a shot on goal was saved by
Joy Lippert to maintain the 1-0 lead. Lyter fired a second shot on goal that was saved by the William Smith goalie before Messiah earned their second penalty corner of the game that resulted in shots from
Ellie Lefever and Lyter being blocked. The Herons earned their first penalty corner in the 40th minute but missed their shot wide. After a shot from the Herons that resulted in a defensive save from Lefever, the Herons regained possession and found the back of the cage to notch the score 1-1 with just over three minutes to play in the third. Neither team was able to register a shot in the remaining minutes, and the score remained 1-1 with 15 minutes to play.
In the fourth quarter,
Olivia Zaskoda missed a shot wide, but the Falcons regained possession.
Addie Weiler blocked a pass from a Herons defender and found the back of the cage for the second time of the afternoon, slotting the ball past the goalie to give Messiah a 2-1 lead with 12:30 to play. Both teams looked to tally another goal with the Falcons earning a penalty corner opportunity. A quick 1-2 on the insert from
Chelsea Carlisle and
Alyssa Lewis found
Ellie Lefever with a shot into the back of the goal to extend the Messiah lead to 3-1. The teams traded possession for the next several minutes until time expired and the Falcons earned the 3-1 win.
Stats
Addie Weiler led the Falcons with two goals while
Ellie Lefever added one.
Aubrey Clark,
Chelsea Carlisle, and
Alyssa Lewis each tallied an assist.
Joy Lippert made four saves in goal for the Falcons while
Ellie Lefever added a defensive save.
Up Next
The Falcons return to action on Wednesday, Sept. 30 at 6:00 p.m. when they travel to Rowan University for their final game before conference play begins.
