WINCHESTER, Va. – A three-goal second half propelled the Washington and Lee women's soccer team to a 4-1 win over Shenandoah in the ODAC opener on Saturday afternoon.
With the game tied, 1-1, entering the second half, all three of W&L's (5-0-2, 1-0-0 ODAC) goals in the final 45 minutes came over a 12-minute span starting in the 52nd minute. Senior forward
Lindsay White (Greenville, S.C. / JL Mann) found senior midfielder
Grace Wielechowski (Charlotte, N.C. / Charlotte Catholic) on a cross to the middle of the box, where Wielechowski finished from close range.
In the 55th minute, Wielechowski and White teamed up again to give the Generals a 3-1 lead, as Wielechowski sent a cross in from the right side, where she found White in front of the goal. From there, White slotted the ball into the back of the net despite pressure from a defender and the Shenandoah (6-1-2, 0-1-0 ODAC) keeper.
W&L tallied its final goal of the game in the 64th minute when junior midfielder
Cameron Grainger (Charlotte, N.C. / Charlotte Country Day) finished a crossing pass from first-year forward
Sophie Berman (Robbinsville, N.J. / Robbinsville).
Shenandoah took an initial 1-0 lead in the 25th minute on a goal from Elizabeth McGee. Kristina Skulte played a long pass up the right side, where Peyton Lubinsky lofted a cross back across her body and goalward. McGee met the ball on the far post and tapped the pass in for the score.
The Generals responded, however, in the 38th minute when Grainger scored directly off a corner kick. She took the attempt from the right corner, and the in-swinging ball curved beyond the keeper to tie things up. Grainger's goal came just seconds after she was denied on a long-range attempt with a diving, one-handed save by the Shenandoah's last line of defense.
Grainger finished the game with a pair of goals and tied with first-years
Helen Otteni (Arlington, Va. / The Potomac School) and
Sarah Zimmerman (Cincinnati, Ohio / Cincinnati Country Day) for the team-high in shot attempts (3). White and Wielechowski tallied three points each on the day with their goal and assist apiece. In goal, junior
Sydney Smith (Damascus, Md. / Damascus) (5-0-2) made one save across the 90 minutes of play.
For the Hornets, McGee paced the offense with her goal and a game-high four shot attempts. McGee was also responsible for the only two Shenandoah shots on goal. Karissa Dominick (6-1-2) allowed four goals in 65:43 of play, but made five saves. Kasie Kilmer entered and played the final 24:17 and made one save.
W&L held a 15-7 advantage in total shots on the day, but limited Shenandoah's chances in the second half with an 8-2 margin. Corner kicks favored the Blue and White by a 6-5 edge.
The Generals will return to action next Saturday, October 1, when they host Mary Washington at 4:00 pm in their final non-conference test of the season.
