Messiah Into Second Round with Win Over Bulldogs
Grantham, PA - Messiah College scored five times and held Brooklyn without a shot in a 5-0 win on Saturday afternoon in the NCAA Tournament. The win pushed the Falcons into Second Round, where they will play either Gettysburg College or Capital University.
The Falcons went up 1-0 less than three minutes into the game on an own goal by the Bulldogs. Messiah's serve from the left side led to the mishap, as defender Allie Brocke mistakenly directed the ball past keeper Rebecca Harmata for a the first score.
Despite dominating territory throughout the first-half, Messiah did not add another goal until the 32nd minute on a penalty kick. Kyele Bridel was taken down in the box and the foul was called, with Nikki Elsaesser putting through the kick.
In the final 10 minutes of the half Erin Sollenberger put the Falcons firmly in control with back-to-back tallies. Her first score came after she stole possession from the Brooklyn defense near the 18 and fired a shot from the right side to the far left post.
Just before the break Sollenberger added her second goal, with assists going to Olivia Snare and Missy Biener; Snare chipped over the 18 to Biener who laid it off quickly for Sollenberger's run to the net.
Early in the second-half Biener tallied herself when she punched through a serve from Holly Burgard.
The Falcons outshot the Bulldogs 29-0 and also finished with a 16-0 edge in corners. Rebecca Harmata made seven saves for Brooklyn.
