LEXINGTON, Va. – Junior
Aubrey Dunbar scored the lone goal of the game to send the No. 5 Washington and Lee women's soccer team past fourth-seeded Bridgewater, 1-0, in the semifinal round of the ODAC Championship on Wednesday night.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- After a scoreless first half, Dunbar put the Generals (15-1-2) up by a goal in the 49th minute. She received a pass on the right side from senior Emily Burke, before making a run to the middle of the pitch. From the top of the 18, Dunbar whipped a shot goalward with her left foot, and she got it past the outstretched reach of Erinn Lockard at the right post.
- The Eagles (13-4-2) had few opportunities in the first half, but managed a dangerous chance in the 33rd minute. Lily Hewatt found herself one-on-one with junior Kate McEnroe, but McEnroe made a quick kick save. The ball stayed near the W&L goal box and Hewatt got another shot off, but McEnroe made a more comfortable save to keep the game scoreless.
- After McEnroe stopped two Laura Narby shots in the 49th and 50 minutes, first-year Cara Dugan nearly gave the Generals a two-goal lead in the 62nd minute, but her shot attempt hit off the crossbar.
- Neither side managed a shot across the final 12 minutes of play, despite the Eagles putting pressure on the W&L defense. The Generals forced a pair of offsides calls on the Eagles deep in their defensive third and managed to kill time in the offensive third by holding onto the ball near the corners.
TOP PERFORMERS:
- Dunbar's winner in the 49th minute was her second goal of the season and her first career game-winning goal. She ranked second on the team in the game in shots (4), trailing junior Elizabeth Zimmerman who took seven shots.
- McEnroe finished the game with five saves to secure her sixth clean sheet of the season.
- Narby, who scored the only goal of the game in the teams' previous meeting a week ago, took a team-high three shots and put two on goal. Hewatt put both of her shot attempts for the game on goal.
- Lockard followed up her strong performance from a week ago with another six saves in the Bridgewater goal.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- McEnroe's sixth shutout of the season marked the 15th of her career. She needs one more to tie Emily Barker '05 for eighth place on the program's career leaderboard.
- The Generals will make their fourth consecutive appearance in the ODAC championship game on Saturday, the longest streak in program history.
- W&L secured its 15th win of the season on Wednesday, making it three seasons in a row the Generals have won at least 15 games, the first such occurrence in program history.
TEAM STATS:
- The Generals outshot the Eagles 26-8 for the game, including 16-4 in the first half. Shots on goal were closer but still favored the hosts, 7-5.
- W&L took nine corner kicks in the game and conceded two. Six of the Generals' corner kicks came in the first half.
UP NEXT:
The Generals will host second-seeded Lynchburg on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. to determine the 2026 ODAC Tournament champion. The Hornets advanced past Batten on Wednesday night on penalty kicks, while W&L topped Lynchburg by a 2-1 score in their regular season meeting on October 3.
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.
