Box Score Bethlehem, Pa. (August 21, 2015)—The Mount St. Mary's University women's soccer team opened the 2015 season with a 7-0 loss at Lehigh on Friday night at the Ulrich Sorts Complex. Freshman Shayna Macfarlane (Hummelstown, Pa.) led the Mountaineers with three shots in the game.
The Mountaineers (0-1) had the first scoring chance of the contest with a free kick from just outside the penalty box seven minutes into the game. Macfarlane took the kick, with her shot going just high.
From there, Lehigh (1-0) carried play the majority of the first half, getting a fantastic scoring chance in the 16th minute when Sabrina Mertz received the ball in the middle with a wide-open goal. Mount senior defender Nicole Vallely (Reading, Pa) made a nice defensive stop when she blocked the shot attempt.
The Mountain Hawks were able to convert just three minutes later when Mertz converted a nice through pass from Grace Correll for a 1-0 advantage. Lehigh stretched the advantage to 2-0 when Tori Pantaleo buried a shot from right in the middle of the box. A Clare Severe header with 3:41 left in the half gave the Mountain Hawks a 3-0 lead at the break.
The Mount had a solid scoring chance with 26 minutes left on a hard shot from Macfarlane that was stopped by Lehigh goalkeeper Ani Nahapetian.
Mertz made it 4-0 when she converted a breakaway with 20:44 left in the game. Becca Sherry converted a cross from Pantaleo just over a minute later to give Lehigh a 5-0 lead. Pantaleo scored on a breakaway and Lexi Chang's goal with just over two minutes left rounded out the scoring.
Lehigh held a 26-to-9 advantage in shots, including a 12-6 edge in shots on goal. Vicky Cocozza (Cinnaminson, N.J.) started in goal for the Mount, making two saves while allowing three goal in the first half. Rachel Bourne (Baltimore, Md.) also had a pair of saves while allowing four goals while playing the second half for the Mountaineers.
Mount St. Mary's returns to action on Sunday, August 23, when Rider visits Waldron Family Stadium to begin a four-game homestand. Kick-off is set for 1:00 p.m.
Game Notes: The Mountaineers had six freshmen in the starting lineup…Macfarlane, Arden Sulit (Statford, N.J.), Jenna West (Manheim, Pa.), Sarah Harmon (Somerset, N.J.), Gianna Pomykacz (Williamstown, N.J.) and Kirsten O'Malley (Montoursville, Pa.) made their first collegiate starts for the Mount…Freshmen Lauren Bogardus (Southampton, N.J.), Katie Kunzman (Exton, Pa.), Nikki Pinto (West Deptford, N.J.), Bianca Gillman (Hummelstown, Pa.), Marcella Fegler (Mount Airy, Md.) and Dom Owad (Harleysville, Pa.) also made their collegiate debuts in the game.…The Mount drops to 0-3 all-time against Lehigh, and 4-20 all-time in season openers.
