CENTER VALLEY, Pa. – The Albright Lions field hockey team used two first half goals to earn a 2-1 victory over DeSales on Wednesday night in non-conference action.
With the win, the Lions improve to 6-7 on the season overall and pick up their first win on the road in 2018. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs fall to 5-7 overall.
Each team traded chances early in the game as DeSales had the first shot on net saved in the fourth minute of the game. Senior
Lindsey Hecker got the Lions on the board in the 19
th minute off an initial blast from sophomore
Bailey Lehman following a penalty corner. Albright then added to its lead three minutes later when senior
Annette Helmandollar tipped in a centering pass from junior
Melissa Nagy. The Lions nearly made it a 3-0 game in the 25
th minute when junior
Kaley Donmoyer had her shot just saved by a Bulldogs defender.
The second half started slowly until a major push from DeSales resulted in their first goal of the game in the 47
th minute to make it a 2-1 game. The Bulldogs scored off a rebound after the initial shot was saved by sophomore goalkeeper
Brynne Schoppe. Albright then received a penalty stroke opportunity in the 51
st minute, but junior
Mia Moshang had her shot saved by the Bulldogs goalkeeper. DeSales responded with extreme pressure over a three minute span that resulted in a penalty stroke opportunity for the Bulldogs. Schoppe slammed the door on the opportunity by making a huge save to keep the Lions in front. The Bulldogs made one last charge with five minutes left in the game with two shots, but neither made it past Schoppe as the Lions preserved the win.
DeSales held a 17-8 overall shot advantage after out-shooting the Lions 13-4 in the second half. The Bulldogs also held an 11-5 advantage in penalty corners as well. Schoppe earned her fourth win of the season after making six saves in the full 70 minutes of the game. Bulldogs goalkeeper Katarina Polyviou suffered the loss after making three saves in the entire 70 minutes.
The Lions will return to action on Saturday, October 13
th when they will travel to face Lebanon Valley in MAC Commonwealth play at 6 p.m.
