Moon Township, Pa.- Saint Francis women's soccer picked up their first win against Robert Morris since 2021 with a 1-0 win on Thursday afternoon.
"It was a really good team performance today." Saint Francis head coach
Brian Diaz said. "We've been focusing alot on set pieces and to see us execute on both ends was fantastic."
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
>> Lauren Pyle netted her first goal and points of the season on a great corner kick from Tomke Dziesiaty, who also tallied her first assist and point of the season.
>> Raine Korpics led the Red Flash in shots on the day with three.
>> The Red Flash were outshot by the Colonials 13-6 in the match.
>> Emma Sawich made six saves on the afternoon.
TURNING POINT OF THE GAME
A corner kick in the 22nd minute saw Dziesiaty deliver a ball right to the head of Pyle, who put the Red Flash ahead.
Sawich sealed the win with a spectacular top corner save in the 88th minute.
"[Emma] Sawich was the star of the day." Diaz said. "She came up big for us multiple times today."
HOW IT HAPPENED
Saint Francis held the majority of the possession in the opening half.
The first shot of the game was Pyle's go-ahead goal.
Just one minute later, Korpics was fouled right outside of the box and the Red Flash had a free kick from a menacing position. The free kick from Korpics hit the wall and resulted in a couple of blocked Red Flash shots.
Haleigh Finale had the Colonials' first shot of the match, but Sawich made the save.
Coming out of the half, the game turned into an end-to-end affair after halftime.
Sawich continued her excellent start with her 50th minute save and a while later, the Colonials had a free kick from a dangerous spot that was put into a decent spot. Sawich punched the ball out of harm's way.
Midway through the half, the Red Flash weathered a storm of Robert Morris pressure and kept themselves ahead of their former Northeast Conference rival.
In the 62nd minute the Red Flash had a great counter attacking opportunity that saw Dziesiaty nearly connect with Alyssa Mella right in front of the net, but a defender stepped in to stop that attack.
Lily Cornwell picked up the scraps of the deflection and fired a shot from outside the 18-yard box, but it was saved by Robert Morris keeper Brenna Murray.
Just a couple of minutes later, Mercedez Paino put a threatening cross into the box from the right flank that nearly found the foot of Korpics in front of the goal.
In the 77th minute, Sawich made a great jumping save, but the rebound was loose near the goal. Rory Schaeffer was able to clear the danger and keep Saint Francis in the lead.
A lightning delay put the game on hold in the 78th minute.
Sawich came up big again, making back-to-back saves in the 81st minute.
Saint Francis had a major counter attacking chance just minutes later, but it ended with an offsides call.
In the 85th minute, Korpics nearly had a one-on-one chance, but the goalkeeper won the footrace to the ball and cleared the line.
Sawich yet again came to the rescue with a brilliant top corner save to keep the Red Flash in front.
In the 88th minute, there was a wild scramble for the ball in front of goal. Robert Morris got two shots off, but Saint Francis blocked them both and cleared the ball.
The Red Flash were able to bleed out the final minute to secure their second win of the young campaign.
"This team continues to show a lot of grit and determination." Diaz said. "We had to deal with the lightning delay but we came out and handled a hectic final 12 minutes with a gritty performance."
FLASH NUGGETS
Pyle, Sawich and Schaeffer maintained their status as ironwomen for the Red Flash by playing all 90 minutes once again. All three have played every single minute for Saint Francis this season.
With her game-winning goal, Pyle has now scored at least one goal in every season of her career. Dziesiaty has recorded a point in three consecutive seasons.
Pyle has now scored in three of her four matches against Robert Morris.
NEXT UP
The Red Flash will host Cleveland State at 4:00 p.m. on Sunday Sep. 1.
