LORETTO, PA- Saint Francis rode three first half goals and stout defense to a big conference win, 3-0 over the Lock Haven Bald Eagles on Friday at DeGol Field.
Three different Flashes scored led by
Irene Fritschy (Zwolle, The Netherlands)'s goal and assist and
Samantha Zeiders (Hummelstown, Pa./Lower Dauphin) made six saves to earn the shutout as SFU improved to 7-5 overall and 2-2 in the Atlantic-10. Lock Haven fell to 13-3 overall on the season and is now 3-3 in conference.
SFU came out pressuring the Bald Eagle defense early. Just minutes into the contest, Fritschy had two good scoring chances, but was denied by starting goalie Paige Stuppy.
Fritschy would find the back of the net in the 14th minute, taking a
Brianna Govia (St. James, Trinidad/Holy Name) pass at the top of the circle and whipping a backhand shot over Stuppy and into the net. Lock Haven would pressure following the opening goal, earning a pair of penalty corners. Zeiders made a nifty blocker save on a Alyscia Smith shot and another Smith attempt off the second penalty corner. The Eagles' last attempt got blocked, sparking a SFU counter-attack.
In the 20th minute,Fritschy blasted another shot that led to a Stuppy pad save, but the rebound went right to
Brea Seabrook (Wilkes Barre, Pa./GAR Memorial) who went top shelf over Stuppy for a 2-0 SFU lead. At the end of the half, the Flash kept pouring it on and made it 3-0 on a tap-in goal from
Erika Stefanides (Kingston, Pa./Wyoming Valley West). In the 34th minute,
Selena Adamshick (Harveys Lake, Pa./Lake-Lehman) drew a double team off a rebound and caught LHU out of position, her pass to Stefanides led her to a wide-open net for a 3-0 SFU lead.
Lock Haven pressed early, looking to close the gap but the Red Flash strong defense did not back down. Zeiders made three saves in the second half, all off a late flurry following a penalty corner. Despite Lock Haven pressing, the Flash did not allow many scoring chances in the second half. Fritschy had a good chance for her second goal of the game midway through the half, but her shot off a penalty corner deflected and bounced wide.
In total, both teams had 11 shots, with Saint Francis owning a 9-6 edge in shots on goal. Most of the match was played in the midfield, leading to just nine penalty corners between the two teams, with LHU taking six.
The Flash will look to make it three straight A-10 wins on Sunday when Saint Louis comes to Loretto. Face-off is set for 1pm.
