Drowned Buccaneers
Lady Flames stay undefeated in conference play with 2-0 win over CSU
In the 70th minute, the Lady Flames (4-5-1, 2-0) put the ball in the back of the net and broke the scoreless tie to give them the momentum that was never relinquished in their 2-0 win against Charleston Southern University (2-4-2, 0-2).
Physical — A Charleston Southern defender tries to hold of Liberty’s Jordan Kestel in front of the goal. Photo credit: Michela Diddle
The Lady Flames dominated the first half, but could not find the net against Buccaneers goalkeeper Alyssa Dellacqua, despite outshooting CSU 15-1, including nine shots on goal. Dellacqua finished the contest with 15 saves, but it was not enough for the Buccaneers, who struggled to find a rhythm offensively.
Senior forward Crystal Elmers took only one shot Saturday evening, and it was a goal assisted by sophomore forward Jennifer Knoebel, who scored the Lady Flames second goal of the game. As Knoebel sent a cross in from the right wing, Elmers made her way down the center of the field to get into position. She back-heeled the ball while directly in front of CSU’s keeper to score the first goal of the game.
“(Knoebel) was driving really well down the line and made a really solid cross in,” Elmers said. “I just got a flick on it. It’s funny because those are hard to do in practice, but with the conditions with the rain; I think it helped for it to just sneak by her.”
Exactly five minutes after Elmers goal, Knoebel notched an unassisted goal from the right side of the net. This was Knoebel’s second goal of the season.
“We talked at halftime about trying to put the ball anywhere but at the keeper,” Head Coach Jessica Hain said. “We played the ball near post quite a bit at the beginning of the game. We talked about avoiding the keeper on our crosses. I think the girls did finally respond and unlock that. All credit to them.”
Throughout the day, Lynchburg was covered with a constant rain and wind that brought the temperature to 61 degrees. Even with the dismal weather, the attendance in the Osborne Stadium was 315, according to libertyflames.com.
The Lady Flames outshot CSU 25-7. Senior Madison Kauzlarich left the game with an injury and is probable to play against Campbell University when the Lady Flames continue conference play at home Sept. 30.
Castel is a sports reporter.