Friday, September 13
Lynchburg, Va.
3:00 PM ET
Liberty University
(3-1)
5
vs
0
William & Mary
(0-5)
1
2
3
4
F
William & Mary
0
0
0
0
0
Liberty
0
2
1
2
5
Liberty bested William & Mary 5-0, Friday.
No. 12 Liberty Rolls Past William & Mary 5-0 For First Home Win
9/13/2024 5:38:00 PM | Field Hockey
LYNCHBURG, Va. – No. 12 Liberty rolled past William & Mary 5-0 for its first home win of the 2024 campaign, Friday afternoon at the Liberty Field Hockey Field.
The Lady Flames featured five different goal scorers: Martu Cian, Ava Murphy (first career goal), Reagan Underwood, Lou Combrinck and Josefina Tomasi. This is Liberty's first shutout of the season and the first shutout of goalkeeper Michaela Skinner's career. Freshmen Malena Magnano and Avery Pollock notched her first career assists.
The Lady Flames bolster their record to 3-1 with their first home victory of the year. Meanwhile, William & Mary remains winless, falling to 0-5.
Scoring Summary
19' – LIBERTY – Martu Cian (Lou Combrinck)
25' – LIBERTY – Ava Murphy (Malena Magnano)
36' – LIBERTY – Reagan Underwood (Lou Combrinck)
53' – LIBERTY – Lou Combrinck (Avery Pollock)
59' – LIBERTY – Josefina Tomasi (Reagan Underwood)
Goalkeepers
W: Michaela Skinner 3-1, zero saves
L: Maddie George 0-4, seven saves
Turning Point
After holding a 10-1 advantage in shots in the opening frame, Liberty broke through with two second quarter goals to take a 2-0 lead at the half. The first goal came from Martu Cian, her team-best fourth of the year. Cian scored on a fast break opportunity led by Lou Combrinck, finishing from the left side at the 18:16 mark for a 1-0 home lead.
With exactly six minutes left in the second quarter, freshman Ava Murphy scored her first collegiate goal. Kyleigh Faust's initial shot was saved by Tribe goalkeeper Maddie George before Malena Magnano found Murphy on the left post on the ensuing rebound. Murphy swept a shot into the cage for a 2-0 Liberty lead.
Liberty continued to apply pressure in the second stanza with three more goals in the final 25:47 of play.
Key Stats & Notes
Liberty's next game will be against No. 4 Duke (3-1), Sunday afternoon at the Liberty Field Hockey Field. Game time is 1 p.m., and it can also be seen on ESPN+.
Liberty and Duke will be matching up for the 10th time. The two teams have met in nine of the last 10 seasons. In those nine meetings, six have gone to overtime, including last year's 2-1 Blue Devils home win over the Lady Flames (Sept. 10, 2023). Liberty is 1-5 all-time against Duke in overtime. The Blue Devils hold a 7-2 advantage in the all-time series, but the Lady Flames have won two of the last four meetings overall.
The Lady Flames featured five different goal scorers: Martu Cian, Ava Murphy (first career goal), Reagan Underwood, Lou Combrinck and Josefina Tomasi. This is Liberty's first shutout of the season and the first shutout of goalkeeper Michaela Skinner's career. Freshmen Malena Magnano and Avery Pollock notched her first career assists.
The Lady Flames bolster their record to 3-1 with their first home victory of the year. Meanwhile, William & Mary remains winless, falling to 0-5.
Scoring Summary
19' – LIBERTY – Martu Cian (Lou Combrinck)
25' – LIBERTY – Ava Murphy (Malena Magnano)
36' – LIBERTY – Reagan Underwood (Lou Combrinck)
53' – LIBERTY – Lou Combrinck (Avery Pollock)
59' – LIBERTY – Josefina Tomasi (Reagan Underwood)
Goalkeepers
W: Michaela Skinner 3-1, zero saves
L: Maddie George 0-4, seven saves
Turning Point
After holding a 10-1 advantage in shots in the opening frame, Liberty broke through with two second quarter goals to take a 2-0 lead at the half. The first goal came from Martu Cian, her team-best fourth of the year. Cian scored on a fast break opportunity led by Lou Combrinck, finishing from the left side at the 18:16 mark for a 1-0 home lead.
With exactly six minutes left in the second quarter, freshman Ava Murphy scored her first collegiate goal. Kyleigh Faust's initial shot was saved by Tribe goalkeeper Maddie George before Malena Magnano found Murphy on the left post on the ensuing rebound. Murphy swept a shot into the cage for a 2-0 Liberty lead.
Liberty continued to apply pressure in the second stanza with three more goals in the final 25:47 of play.
Key Stats & Notes
- The Lady Flames tacked on insurance goals in the 36th, 53rd and 59th minutes, respectively. Reagan Underwood scored on a reverse at the 35:13 mark, her first of the year. Meanwhile, Lou Combrinck notched her first goal of the season at the 52:18 mark, assisted by Avery Pollock. Josefina Tomasi tallied the fifth and final goal of the day for Liberty with just over a minute left in regulation (58:47).
- Liberty dominated the shot count, outshooting William & Mary 25-2. The Lady Flames held a 12-0 edge in shots on cage and 6-2 penalty corner advantage. Liberty's 25 shots were a season high.
- Combrinck matched a career high and led the team with four points (1 g, 2 a). Combrinck's other four-point came in a two-goal effort versus Providence on Sept. 22, 2023 at home. She tallied a career-best seven shots (three on goal) in the match.
- Martu Cian scored her 25th career goal today. Cian is the 13th player in school history to reach 25 career goals.
- Underwood matched a career high with three points (1 g, 1 a).
- Redshirt sophomore Michaela Skinner notched her first collegiate shutout. Skinner holds a 3-1 record with a 0.94 goals-against-average and nine saves in four games. The Liberty defense has only yielded four total goals through four contests.
- Liberty redshirt freshman Madie Baker saw her first collegiate action today.
- All five of Liberty's goals came from open play.
- Liberty's five-goal margin of victory is its largest since also topping Georgetown 5-0 in last year's regular season finale (Oct. 27, 2023).
- The Lady Flames improve to 4-2 all-time versus the Tribe. Liberty has bested William & Mary in each of the last two seasons.
Liberty's next game will be against No. 4 Duke (3-1), Sunday afternoon at the Liberty Field Hockey Field. Game time is 1 p.m., and it can also be seen on ESPN+.
Liberty and Duke will be matching up for the 10th time. The two teams have met in nine of the last 10 seasons. In those nine meetings, six have gone to overtime, including last year's 2-1 Blue Devils home win over the Lady Flames (Sept. 10, 2023). Liberty is 1-5 all-time against Duke in overtime. The Blue Devils hold a 7-2 advantage in the all-time series, but the Lady Flames have won two of the last four meetings overall.
Team Stats
WM
LIBERTY
Goals
0
5
Shots
2
25
Shots on Goal
0
12
Saves
7
0
Corners
2
6
Offsides
0
0
Fouls
0
0
Scoring Plays
CIAN, Martu (4)
Assisted By: COMBRINCK, Lou
Fast break, scored from left side
18:16
MURPHY, Ava (1)
Assisted By: MAGNANO, Malena
Left post, swept in
24:00
UNDERWOOD, Reagan (1)
Assisted By: COMBRINCK, Lou
Reverse from right side, top shelf
35:13
COMBRINCK, Lou (1)
Assisted By: POLLOCK, Avery
Scored from in front, reverse
52:18
TOMASI, Josefina (2)
Assisted By: UNDERWOOD, Reagan
Reverse blast into right side
58:47
Game Leaders
Shots
7
SOG
3
Goals
1
Assists
2
Shots
2
SOG
1
Goals
1
Assists
1
Shots
3
SOG
3
Goals
1
Assists
0
Shots
3
SOG
2
Goals
1
Assists
0
Players Mentioned
D/M
/ Field Hockey
F
/ Field Hockey
M/F
/ Field Hockey
D
/ Field Hockey
F
/ Field Hockey
M
/ Field Hockey
F
/ Field Hockey
GK
/ Field HockeyM
/ Field Hockey
M
/ Field HockeyLiberty Field Hockey Defeats ODU
Saturday, October 04
Coach Parsley-Blocker & Julieta Tornati Talk About The Win Over ODU
Saturday, October 04
Liberty Field Hockey Defeats UConn
Saturday, September 27
Coach Parsley-Blocker & Dara Semmartin Talk About The Win Over UConn
Saturday, September 27