SALISBURY, Md. – The 17th-ranked Washington and Lee women's soccer team was handed its first loss of the season on Friday by a 1-0 score at Salisbury.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The lone goal in the contest came in the 41st minute off the foot of Abby Mattia. Coming off a throw-in within the Generals' (8-1-4) defensive third, Kristen Ging gained possession of the ball on the right side, just outside the 18. She dribbled towards the middle of the box and found Mattia at the top, who used one touch to settle before shooting to the bottom-left corner of the frame.
W&L forced Salisbury (9-4-1) keeper Riley Pinato to make her toughest save of the game in the 81st minute on a shot by senior
Cameron Grainger. Coming off a clear from the defensive half, the Generals managed to get the ball to junior
Sam Berish making a run up the left and into the box. Berish found Grainger cutting across the six-yard box, and Grainger hit a right-curling shot under the crossbar, but Pinato dove to her left and punched the ball over the frame for a corner.
Despite the loss, the Generals held a 56-percent share of possession in the contest. Not only that, but the Sea Gulls did not threaten a second goal often in the second half, as the W&L backline limited the home team to just two shot attempts, neither of which were on goal.
TEAM STATS:
The Generals finished the day with a 17-8 advantage in total shots, which was helped by an 11-2 margin in the second half, following an even 6-6 split in the first. The Blue and White also saw 10 total corner kicks, conceded three and edged the Sea Gulls, 7-1, in the second half.
TOP PERFORMERS:
Sophomore
Sophie Berman led the Generals' offense with five shots and two on goal, while Grainger and sophomore
Helen Otteni both attempted three times with one shot on goal. First-year
Amelia Manke took two shots and put both attempts on goal.
Senior
Sydney Smith played all 90 minutes in goal for the Generals and made three saves.
For Salisbury, Mattia's goal came on her only shot of the game, after she entered the contest in the first-half as a substitution. Ging and Rebecca Fairbanks led the team with two shots apiece, and Pinato made three saves to earn the shutout.
NOTEWORTHY POINTS:
Today's matchup marked just the sixth all-time meeting between Salisbury and W&L. The Generals are now 3-1-2 against the Sea Gulls, with five of the six all-time matchups having been decided by a goal or less.
UP NEXT:
The Generals will return to conference play at home in their next game when they face-off against Roanoke on Wednesday night at 7:00 pm.
Nestled in the mountains of Virginia, Washington and Lee University is a proud member of NCAA Division III and the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Founded in 1749, W&L is the ninth-oldest college in the United States and a top-ranked liberal arts university. With over 500 student-athletes in 24 varsity sports, the Generals have celebrated over 265 conference championships. Learn more about the Blue and White by visiting www.generalssports.com or on social media at @WLUGenerals.
