WAYNESBURG, Pa. (Sept. 7) – The Waynesburg University women's soccer team played its second-straight home game to open the 2021 season when La Roche came to John F. Wiley Stadium on Tuesday night. The Yellow Jackets raced out to a 3-0 halftime lead and added two more goals in the second half to roll to a 5-0 victorThe win was one of the most impressive in recent program history. It marked Waynesburg's (1-1) most goals scored since a 6-1 victory over Bethany in 2015. Tuesday also gave first-year head coach
George DeAugustino his first win as leader of the program.
Five different Yellow Jackets found the back of the net, while four different Waynesburg players logged one assist each. That offensive balance led to a 24-10 shot differential and a 13-5 advantage in shots on goal. Waynesburg also held an 8-3 edge in corner kicks.
The home team got all the offensive support it needed in the fifth minute when freshman
Brooklyn Loveland (New Cumberland, W.Va. / Oak Glen) recorded her first collegiate goal off an assist from sophomore
Jacinda Devart (Grafton, W.Va. / Grafton). That lead doubled to 2-0 when another Waynesburg newcomer, freshman
Ally Hall (Glen Burnie, Md. / Glen Burnie), found the net for the first time as a collegian. Hall was set up by junior
Emily Redman 8:51 into the contest.
Senior
Meghan Briski (Gibsonia, Pa. / Pine-Richland), who is best known for her defensive prowess, cashed in on a rare scoring opportunity following sophomore
Grace Ingram's (Valencia, Pa. / Mars) assist. Briski's goal made the score 3-0 with just under 16 minutes left to play before halftime.
The scoring died down through the first 33-plus minutes of period number two. However, freshman
Haley Johnson (Somerset, Pa. / Rockwood) logged her second score in as many games during the 78
th minute after taking a feed from sophomore
Kate James (Silver Spring, Md. / St. John's College H.S.). The day's final point came courtesy of Redman, who converted a turnover deep in La Roche territory for her first goal of the 2021 campaign.
Junior goalkeeper
Autumn Blair (Penn Hills, Pa. / Penn Hills) started in net and played the first half, during which she made one save. Junior
Kennedy Schuck (Marietta, Ohio / Marietta) played the final 45 minutes and tallied four saves to preserve the shutout.
Waynesburg will try to carry the momentum from Tuesday night's impressive victory into its first road game of the season. The Jackets travel to Mount Aloysius, on Saturday, Sept. 11, for a 1 p.m. start time.