Beckley, WV—The Mercyhurst Women's Soccer team came up short in their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2008, falling to Concord 3-1 in the Atlantic Regional First Round.
How it Happened
The Mountain Lions struck first with a goal off the head of Yasmin Moby in the 21st minute. After a corner threat that was initially blocked by Mercyhurst's Beth O'Donnell, the Lakers thought they had cleared the ball until Michelle Brogden crossed the ball in to find Mosby.
Mercyhurst kept the pressure up, and in the 29th minute finally got the Concord defense to crack. With the Lakers pushing forward, Concord took the ball away and tried to play it back to their keeper. But a bad pass skipped by Leah Marsh, and Emily Mijares was able to finish it off to even up the game.
Neither team would score again in the first half.
The Lakers put together a few more scoring chances in the second half, but Marsh was able to turn them all away. Meanwhile, the Mountain Lions added goals by Brogden in the 62nd minute and Zoe Belding in the 76th minute to seal the game.
On Saturday, Concord will face Bloomsburg, who took down Gannon 2-1 in overtime in the tournament opener.
By the Numbers
Concord was able to maintain possession throughout most of the game and kept the pressure up with set pieces. They had nine corner kicks in the first half while the Lakers would not see their first corner until the second half. In the end, the Mountain Lions finished with 16 corner kicks to the Lakers' three.
The Mountain Lions kept the PSAC West Defensive Athlete of the Year Maddie Elbro on her toes all night, sending 14 shots on net throughout the game. Her 10 saves matched her previous season high.
Coach's Quote
"When you think about it, for a lot of our players, this might be their first or second official season with the pandemic, and I'm really proud of them," Head Coach Jon Arlet said following the game. "First time in the NCAA Tournament and going away, I thought the effort was fantastic. I thought the organization made sense. I thought Maddie Elbro was unbelievable. All in all, it's a performance we can build on and be proud of."
