PITTSBURGH, PA – La Roche women's soccer (0-0-1) opened the season and their new soccer field with an impressive 1-1 2OT draw against Muskingum University (0-0-1) on Friday night.
The Lady Redhawks and Muskingum entered halftime goalless despite La Roche's 10-4 shot advantage in the opening frame.
Muskingum took a 1-0 lead three minutes into the second half but Alex Rogers evened things up in the 59th minute when she tallied the Redhawks first goal on the new turf. Vanessa Ceravolo drew a foul to set up a free kick and Rogers bent a low shot around the wall to convert the goal. Rogers nearly gave La Roche a lead late when she lifted a shot just above the crossbar but neither team could cash in and the game went into overtime.
The visiting Muskies had multiple scoring chances in OT but La Roche's defensive formation held tough and trapped Muskingum off sides five times. Ceravolo had the Lady Redhawk's best overtime chance when she found a crack in the defense but Muskingum's goalkeeper made a leaping stop to preserve the draw.
Sarah Stierer, Hayley Shaw, and Chloe McGinnis combined to force eleven off sides and Destiney Davis played terrific in net.
The offense outshot the Muskies 17-12 and Rogers scored the Lady Redhawks lone tally. Ceravolo provided 5 shots while Taylor Breen attempted 3 shots. Christine Chiodo and Kayla Bartok each had two shots in the draw.
The Lady Redhawks return to the pitch tomorrow when they take on Penn State Beaver in a JV squad match. Kick-off is scheduled for 1PM.