Box Score Chris Kendrick (@CKendrick86)
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – The No.4 Northwood University (Fla.) women's soccer team dropped their 2014 home opener to seventh-ranked Davenport University (Mich.), 4-2, in a non-conference match at Arrigo-Vecellio Field Wednesday morning.
The two Top 10 powers battled back-and-forth in the opening eight minutes. In the ninth minute, the Panthers dented the scoreboard on a corner kick attempt. The Lady Seahawks couldn't clear the loose ball out of the zone, allowing Davenport sophomore forward Shameeka Fishley to find sophomore midfielder Abbey Tyson, who beat Northwood senior goalkeeper Matilda Hjalte (Falkenberg, Sweden) for her first goal of the day.
Just over 20 minutes later, Northwood used a corner kick of their own to pull even. Senior midfielder Amy Vaughan (Sheffield, England) lofted a corner into the box, where freshman midfielder Julia Axengren (Gallstad, Sweden) headed a volley towards the net, and then senior midfielder Hanna Lindstrom (Malmo, Sweden) delivered the final touch to beat Panthers senior keeper Michelle Marcus, knotting the game at 1-1.
Less than six minutes later, the Panther responded as Fishley took a loose ball down the sideline towards the goal. Hjalte charged from her goal to stifle the attempt from Fishley, but before she could reach her, FIshley chipped a ball to the center of the box, finding a freshman forward Leah Hardy, who put the ball in the back of the goal, regaining a 2-1 lead. Davenport maintained their 2-1 lead heading into the halftime.
In the 55th minute of play, the Panthers extended their lead on a corner kick. On the ensuing attempt, senior defender Tam Grzybowski launched the corner to the far side of the box, where senior midfielder Natalie McHale blasted a header to the opposite of the net, pushing the Davenport lead to 3-1. Just over eight minutes later, the Panthers delivered their final blow as Fishley received a ball in the box, flicked it over her head, and found Tyson open on the far side, where she laced a shot past Hjalte's right side, extending the Davenport advantage to 4-1.
The Lady Seahawks added a late tally as Vaughan drew a foul in front of the goal, resulting in a penalty kick. On the penalty kick attempt, Vaughan beat Panthers junior goalie Tara Gessler to her left side, cutting the lead to the eventual 4-2 final.
The Lady Seahawks outshot the Panthers, 13-8, during the contest. Hjalte stopped four shots for Northwood, while Marcus made a game-high six saves for the Davenport.
The Lady Seahawks fall to 0-2 on the season, while Davenport improves to 2-0 overall. Northwood will return to the pitch on Friday, August 29th in a road test at No. 9 William Carey. Kickoff is scheduled for 5:00 p.m.
NORTHWOOD SOCCER
