The Longwood field hockey team rode a trio of second half goals to beat Appalachian State 4-1 on Sept. 17. The win was their second straight, and it brings the Lancers to 5-3 on the season.
In a relatively even opening half in Boone, N.C., it was the Mountaineers who struck first. Junior defender Rebecca McLean opened the scoring in the 10th minute to give the home side a 1-0 lead. But in the 18th minute, junior forward Edel Nyland equalized for Longwood with her NCAA leading 10th goal of the season.
"The first half we were a little off, but we came out after halftime and played awesome," said senior midfielder Ellen Ross on the official Longwood athletics website. "It was a complete team effort. Everyone was doing their job.”
The second half was key for the Lancers, beginning with freshman midfielder Olivia Wawrzyniak’s 46th minute goal. Junior defender Lil-Sophie Achterwinter made it 3-1 in the 64th minute before sophomore midfielder Leonie Verstraete put the game away two minutes later.
"It was a really good, solid performance where we controlled large portions of the game," said head coach Iain Byers, on the official Longwood athletics website. "We're really proud of how we played, how we moved the ball and how we dealt well with their pressure. We really have a lot of depth, which especially showed up with four different goal-scorers."
The three goals reflected Longwood’s dominance after halftime, outshooting Appalachian State 8-1 and denying the Mountaineers a shot in the final 21 minutes.
"I think we finally had a game where we proved to everyone how good we are this season," Ross said on the official Longwood athletics website.
The Lancers stay on the road for a rivalry game with Liberty on Sept. 20, before opening up MAC conference play at home against Kent State on Sept. 25.
