Thursday, September 5
Blacksburg, Va.
7:30 PM ET
Liberty University
7-0-0, 0-0-0
2
at
1
Virginia Tech
5-1-1, 0-0-0
1
2
F
Liberty
1
1
2
Virginia Tech
1
0
1
Lady Flames Top No. 21 Virginia Tech 2-1, Pick Up First Ever Ranked Victory
9/5/2024 11:26:00 PM | Women's Soccer
BLACKSBURG, Va. – Halle Engle's two goals led Liberty to a monumental victory, earning its first-ever victory over a ranked team, topping No. 21 Virginia Tech on the road Thursday night. Liberty improves to a perfect 7-0 to begin the 2024 season with its triumph over Virginia Tech (5-1-1).
Engle (six goals) put the Lady Flames on the board in the 31st minute. Sallie Garner sent in a corner that flew past Virginia Tech's goalkeeper, Lauren Hargrove. Engle was in prime position in the center of the 6-yard box to nail a header to open the game.
Virginia Tech answered swiftly with a score from Sophie Maltese. Kylie Marschall sent a ball from just within the corner flag and sent a ball in the middle of the 18-yard box. Maltese placed a picture-perfect header that glanced off Liberty's Peyton Huber who could not get enough of the ball for a save.
Liberty answered back shortly in the second half with Engle's second tally of the night. The forward timed her run perfectly to receive a pass from Ivy Garner and sent the ball past a lunging Hargrove.
The Lady Flames earned their first-ever victory over a ranked opponent after previously dropping their last nine opportunities. Liberty also won its second-ever triumph over Virginia Tech. Liberty previously topped the Hokies in 2003 with a 2-1 OT victory.
Thoughts from Head Coach Lang Wedemeyer
"To God be the Glory! It's an incredible result for our team. Virginia Tech is an incredible team. We feel very blessed that we were able to get a result for how hard the players worked."
On the play of Halle Engle
"Halle was dangerous every time she was on the ball. She created so much for us today and it was fantastic to see her play. Every time she got the ball, she was a handful for Virginia Tech."
On holding the lead for the majority of the second half
"The team really dug in tonight. We were under the gun. They were sending a lot of numbers forward and we maintained a brick wall in the back."
"I thought our back line with Kayla (Magee), Sallie (Garner), Lauren (Littleton) and Elise (Graf), they just worked so hard today… Everybody did, it was such a great team effort."
Scoring Summary
31' – Liberty – Halle Engle (Sallie Garner)
33' – Virginia Tech – Sophie Maltese (Kylie Marschall)
51' – Liberty – Halle Engle (Ivy Garner)
Lady Flames News & Notes
Liberty prepares for its second of five consecutive road games, heading to West Virginia on Sunday. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
Engle (six goals) put the Lady Flames on the board in the 31st minute. Sallie Garner sent in a corner that flew past Virginia Tech's goalkeeper, Lauren Hargrove. Engle was in prime position in the center of the 6-yard box to nail a header to open the game.
Virginia Tech answered swiftly with a score from Sophie Maltese. Kylie Marschall sent a ball from just within the corner flag and sent a ball in the middle of the 18-yard box. Maltese placed a picture-perfect header that glanced off Liberty's Peyton Huber who could not get enough of the ball for a save.
Liberty answered back shortly in the second half with Engle's second tally of the night. The forward timed her run perfectly to receive a pass from Ivy Garner and sent the ball past a lunging Hargrove.
The Lady Flames earned their first-ever victory over a ranked opponent after previously dropping their last nine opportunities. Liberty also won its second-ever triumph over Virginia Tech. Liberty previously topped the Hokies in 2003 with a 2-1 OT victory.
Thoughts from Head Coach Lang Wedemeyer
"To God be the Glory! It's an incredible result for our team. Virginia Tech is an incredible team. We feel very blessed that we were able to get a result for how hard the players worked."
On the play of Halle Engle
"Halle was dangerous every time she was on the ball. She created so much for us today and it was fantastic to see her play. Every time she got the ball, she was a handful for Virginia Tech."
On holding the lead for the majority of the second half
"The team really dug in tonight. We were under the gun. They were sending a lot of numbers forward and we maintained a brick wall in the back."
"I thought our back line with Kayla (Magee), Sallie (Garner), Lauren (Littleton) and Elise (Graf), they just worked so hard today… Everybody did, it was such a great team effort."
Scoring Summary
31' – Liberty – Halle Engle (Sallie Garner)
33' – Virginia Tech – Sophie Maltese (Kylie Marschall)
51' – Liberty – Halle Engle (Ivy Garner)
Lady Flames News & Notes
- The Lady Flames were 0-9 in all previous ranked matchu-ps with each contest against Virginia.
- The Lady Flames improved to a perfect 7-0 record this season. Liberty previously opened the 2023 season with an 11-0 record.
- Halle Engle leads Liberty with six goals this season and a team-high 13 points.
- Engle has scored the opening goal of the game in each game that she has scored.
- Liberty has grabbed the early 1-0 advantage in every game this season.
- The Lady Flames improve to 4-0 against in-state programs in 2024. Liberty faces off with George Mason on Sept. 21.
- Liberty outshot Virginia Tech, 11-9, on Thursday night with five shots going on goal. Engle led all players with four shots.
- Three Lady Flames - Elise Graf, Lauren Littleton and Kayla Magee - all played 90 minutes on Thursday night.
- Liberty goalkeepers Peton Huber (started) and Grace Workman have split time in every game this season.
- The Lady Flames improved to 3-0 on the road this season.
Liberty prepares for its second of five consecutive road games, heading to West Virginia on Sunday. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
Team Stats
LU
VT
Goals
2
1
Shots
11
9
Shots on Goal
5
3
Saves
2
3
Corners
7
5
Fouls
12
12
Scoring Plays
Halle Engle (6)
Assisted By: Sallie Garner
GOAL by LU Engle, Halle Assist by Garner, Sallie.
30:55
Sophie Maltese (1)
Assisted By: Kylie Marschall
GOAL by VT Maltese, Sophie Assist by Marschall, Kylie.
32:56
Halle Engle (6)
Assisted By: Ivy Garner
GOAL by LU Engle, Halle Assist by Garner, Ivy.
50:15
Game Leaders
fwd
Shots
4
SOG
2
Goals
2
Assists
0
fwd
Shots
1
SOG
0
Goals
0
Assists
1
Shots
0
SOG
0
Goals
0
Assists
1
Shots
3
SOG
2
Goals
0
Assists
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's SoccerF
/ Women's SoccerD
/ Women's Soccer
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/ Women's Soccer
GK
/ Women's Soccer
D
/ Women's Soccer
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/ Women's Soccer
GK
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Coach Wedemeyer & Halle Engle Talk About The Win Over KSU
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Carly Keene: Why Liberty?
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Gameday with Liberty Women's Soccer
Wednesday, September 10