LEXINGTON, Va. – A late goal from sophomore
Helen Otteni helped the 18th-ranked Washington and Lee women's soccer team salvage a draw, 1-1, against Lynchburg on Saturday afternoon.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Trailing by a goal and with time becoming the Generals' (7-0-4, 3-0-2 ODAC) biggest enemy, W&L put the ball back in play on a throw-in deep in their own territory, where sophomore
Sarah Zimmerman then drew a hard foul. Sophomore
Bryn Bissinger took the free kick from just inside W&L territory at midfield and sent a long pass towards the Lynchburg (7-3-1, 3-1-1 ODAC) box. A Hornet defender got her head to the ball, but that put the ball into a blank space inside the 18, where Otteni raced in and hit a one-timed shot into the low-right corner of the goal to tie things up with just 70 seconds left.
The Hornets got on the board in the 69th minute on a corner kick. Lynchburg sent the corner cross from the left side, swinging inward, and the ball bounced off the back of a W&L defender and into the back of the net.
Between the 69th and 89th minutes, the Hornets managed just two total shot attempts as the Generals controlled a majority of the possession and offensive chances looking for the equalizer. Meghan Lauder had a shot blocked in the 76th minute and Alix Allen nearly put the Hornets up two goals a minute later, but had her shot hit off the crossbar.
The Generals were struck by some additional bad luck on one additional shot in both halves. Otteni had an attempt in the 18th minute also hit off the crossbar, followed by a Lynchburg team save in the 64th minute, as a shot from Zimmerman had eyes for a score, but was cleared off the line near the right post by the Lynchburg defense.
TOP PERFORMERS:
Otteni's goal with 1:10 left to play was her third of the season, all of which have come in the last two contests. She and Zimmerman led the Blue and White offense with seven combined shots and two attempts each on goal. Senior
Cameron Grainger and sophomore
Sydney Devory added three shots and one on goal each as well. In goal, senior
Sydney Smith made two saves for the Generals across the 90 minutes of action.
Lynchburg goalkeeper Jade Lecklider played all 90 minutes in goal and made five saves to lead the visitors. On offense, four different players tied with two shots, while Lauren Orner and Leilianis Irigoyen put one shot apiece on goal.
NOTEWORTHY POINTS:
With the draw, the Generals continue their unbeaten streak in the regular season, a streak that now sits at 36 games (27-0-9). Lynchburg was the last team to beat the Generals in the regular season, a 2-1 overtime result on October 1, 2021. W&L's last regulation loss came on September 18, 2021, against Emory (1-0).
TEAM STATS:
The Generals outshot the Hornets in both halves, going 8-3 in the first and 11-6 in the second, for a final count of 19-9. W&L's backline limited Lynchburg to just two shots on goal out of the nine attempts, and both teams split 10 corner kicks evenly.
UP NEXT:
The Generals will look to add three more points to their conference standing in their next contest, a 3:00 pm start on Wednesday against Hollins.
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.
