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Juniata College
Melissa Rutherford scored her first two career goals in the win.
Melissa Rutherford scored her first two career goals in the win.
September 23, 2015

Second Half Outburst Fuels Field Hockey Win Over DeSales

CENTER VALLEY, Pa. Five different Eagles got into the scoring column as the Juniata field hockey team scored five times in the second half enroute to a 6-1 win over DeSales on Wednesday night. With the victory, JC improves to 3-4 while the Bulldogs fall to 1-6.

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CENTER VALLEY, Pa. Five different Eagles got into the scoring column as the Juniata field hockey team scored five times in the second half enroute to a 6-1 win over DeSales on Wednesday night. With the victory, JC improves to 3-4 while the Bulldogs fall to 1-6.

 

The Eagles dominated the first period in shots by a 14-5 margin. Despite the difference, JC did not score until the 28th minute. Allison Groft (Hanover, Pa./South Western) chipped a shot over DeSales goalkeeper Savannna Lacek's head and the ball was redirected into the cage by Melissa Rutherford (Phoenixville, Pa./Phoenixville) to put the Eagles ahead, 1-0.

 

It was all Juniata in the second half. In the 49th minute, Katie Alexander (Mifflinburg, Pa./Mifflinburg) passed to Sarah Bilheimer (Bethlehem, Pa./Freedom) for the score to put the Eagles ahead 2-0. Alexander would assist Brittani LaFollette (Baltimore, Md./Sparrows Point) on her goal in the 54th minute on a long pass that LaFollette scored on a breakaway. Less than two minutes later, Alexander connected with Rutherford for the goal to give JC a 4-0 lead.

 

Molly Nowell (Greencastle, Pa./Greencastle-Antrim) registered her first career goal in the 61st minute on an assist from Brittany Meier (Pennsylvania Furnace, Pa./State College). Meier scored herself less than three minutes later with a helper from Bilheimer. The Eagles nearly had the shutout but DeSales got on the board with 25 seconds left to play in the game.

 

Kylie Edwards (Danville, Pa./Danville) received the start in goal and recorded three saves. Santana Mays (Parkton, Md./Hereford) came in the second half and stopped two shots. Jess Gray (Bordentown, N.J./Bordentown Regional) also saw time and did not record a save. Kelsey Leibelsperger (Fleetwood, Pa./Fleetwood) had one defensive save.

"Today we had a great second half," said head coach Caroline Gillich. "We played with much greater speed in transition. When we turned it on we had space to play our running and passing game. We also generated corners and scored twice. Every player that traveled today was in the game. It was a great day for JCFH."

  

Despite being outshot 8-7 in the second half, Juniata enjoyed a 21-13 advantage overall. The Eagles also led in penalty corners, 16-13.

 

Juniata returns to Knox Stadium for their first Landmark Conference game of the season when it hosts Drew. Game time will be at 1 p.m.