ANNVILLE, Pa. – The Lebanon Valley College women's soccer team battled valiantly in its home opener, while dropping a 2-1 contest to Elizabethtown College on Sunday, Sept. 6, at Herbert Field.
Kennedy Dings scored her first career goal for LVC, while
Jayme Beninda tallied an assist.
The Dutchmen (0-2-0) and Blue Jays (1-0-1) went back and forth defensively early in the game, as neither team took a shot for over eight minutes at the start. Elizabethtown opened the scoring 8:24 into the first half, taking a 1-0 lead when Sara Bean scored a goal on a free kick. Lebanon Valley countered with a shot by Beninda at the 10:55 mark, which went over the upper-right corner of the net.
The programs followed this by continuing to battle defensively, as nearly 13 minutes passed before another shot was registered.
Ashlynn Newton recorded a shot for LVC at the 23:54 mark, which went above the net. The Blue Jays later logged an attempt 27:43 into the contest, which went above the net. The defenses of Lebanon Valley and Elizabethtown remained dominant through the rest of the first half, as neither squad tallied another shot. The Blue Jays took their one-goal advantage into halftime.
The Flying Dutchmen were aggressive offensively when the second half got underway, taking nine shots with three attempts on goal during the first 14:13 of the stanza. During this stretch,
Lauren O'Malley had shots saved at the 45:41 and 46:31 marks. Dings also sent a ball toward the net that was saved at the 54:13 mark, while
Sophia Floyd took a shot that went off the crossbar at the 57:59 mark. Elizabethtown later scored 61:41 into the game, going ahead 2-0 on a goal by Sky Shinnen.
Lebanon Valley continued to send shots toward the net as the second stanza went on.
McKenna Valentine had a try go over the upper-right corner of the net, and
Kalei Noonan had an attempt go above the net, within 31 seconds in the 72nd minute. Noonan also put a shot on goal for LVC at the 73:23 mark, which was saved. The Dutchmen kept working to generate offensive opportunities as the end of the contest approached, as
Sarah Gowell and
Emilee Walborn each took a shot that went to the left of the net within seven seconds in the 81st minute.
Megan Ressler contributed to these efforts with a shot on target, which was saved at the 84:16 mark.
The Flying Dutchmen got on the board at the 85:19 mark, narrowing their deficit to 2-1. The program made it a one-goal game when Beninda delivered a corner kick to just behind the goal box, leading to Dings sending a header shot into the net for a goal. The Blue Jays countered with a shot at the 86:50 mark, but LVC's defense came through with a block. Ressler then put a shot on goal for Lebanon Valley, which was saved at the 88:40 mark. Ultimately, Elizabethtown preserved its lead through the end of the contest.
Inside the Box Score
- Dings scored her first career goal for a career-high two points. The sophomore also attempted three shots and tied a game-high two shots on goal.
- Beninda was credited with an assist on the goal by Dings.
- Lebanon Valley outshot Elizabethtown 20-4 and had a 7-2 advantage in shots on goal.
- Newton took a game-high four shots.
- Ressler and O'Malley both tied a game-high two shots on goal.
- The Flying Dutchmen had a 7-2 advantage in corner kicks.
Up Next
The Flying Dutchmen will be back in action on Tuesday, Sept. 8, at 4 p.m., when the team will host Immaculata University at Herbert Field.
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