PAINESVILLE, Ohio -- The Lake Erie women's soccer team hosted Malone in their second G-MAC competition of the season, losing this one by a final score of 1-0. This loss puts the Storm at a 1-4 overall record, and more importantly, 0-2 in conference play.
Game Recap
It was a rough day for the Storm offense, as Malone completely dominated time-of-possession. The ball must have been on the Storm side of the field 70% of the game, as Lake Erie was constantly on it's heels and in more of a protective mode rather than looking for attacking opportunities. That being said, the Storm were able to turn their possessions into shot attempts, boasting an 14-11 edge over Malone. Much credit can be placed on the Storm defenders, as they did a fabulous job of limiting shot attempts from the aggressive Pioneers deep into Lake Erie territory. Countless times, smart play from Lake Erie forced Malone to halt their fast pace through throw-ins, leading to the Storm being able to have more time to set up their formidable defense, a unit that held strong apart from the only goal in the game, 44 minutes in.
Leading the effort for the Storm in shot attempts was
Makenna Sanom,
Ainsley MacKenzie, and
Leonie Witt, all attempting three shots apiece. No other player for Lake Erie attempted more than one shot. Sophomore goalkeeper
Morgan Vanmeter recorded six saves in the contest.
Following G-MAC competition on Saturday,
Leonie Witt leads the conference in shots-on-goal/game, averaging 2.6 per contest.
Morgan Vanmeter is second in the G-MAC in saves with 27 so far.
The Matchup
Coming into the contest, Malone held a 3-7-3 record over Lake Erie in their matchups, yet in those 13 games, 10 were decided by one goal or less, showing just how competitive this series has always been. Last year, Lake Erie was able to sneak out a 1-0 win on the road. The Storm unfortunately aren't scheduled another game against Malone this season, but hopefully in the years to come they can close the gap on the series record.
Looking Ahead
The Storm will look to get back in the win column when they travel to Findlay on Thursday, before hosting another Saturday home game against Ohio Dominican on September 28th. Findlay boasts a very talented team despite their 1-2-2 record. The G-MAC preseason 4th ranking team had three difficult road non-conference matchups to start their season and then had the pleasure of facing the conference-favorite and #11 team in DII Ashland Eagles. Hosting their first home game on Saturday, Findlay easily bested Cedarville 3-0. A similar story can be said for Ohio Dominican, as they're another talented team that failed to win any of their non-conference games, yet have had better success in the G-MAC thus far, tying against Walsh 2-2 and winning on Saturday at Kentucky Wesleyan 2-1. The Storm certainly have their hands full with these two teams, but as the team grows together under new head coach Carl Contrascier, expect the offense to come together in a big way.
