James Madison Outlasts Liberty in 2-1 Victory

Sunday, September 6

Harrisonburg, Va.

1 p.m.

James Madison University

4-2-0

Liberty

1-3-1

Liberty

James Madison

9/6/2015 3:26:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Box Score

HARRISONBURG, Va. - The James Madison women's soccer team defeated the Liberty Flames, 2-1 on Sunday afternoon, with Rachel Ivey's first goal of the season in the 32nd minute being the difference. The win is the Dukes' third in a row.

Junior midfielder Allie Bunner netted her fifth goal of the season to open the scoring in the 10th minute. After a JMU (4-2-0) pass was deflected behind the goal, senior Kelly Kerrigan stepped up to take a corner kick. Instead of sending the ball directly into the box, Kerrigan played the ball to junior Jennie Sroba who then sent the ball straight to Bunner in front of the net for the goal.

The Dukes continued to keep the Flames (1-3-1) in check up until the 27th minute when they found an equalizer. A through ball from Jordan Ketsel rolled perfectly into the path of Crystal Elmers, who created chances all afternoon with her speed. With a good amount of space between her and the closest defender, Elmers dribbled into the box and passed it across to Jennifer Knoebel who had made the run from the right side to score the Flames' lone goal on the day.

Only five minutes later, the Dukes scored the game-winning goal. Junior Ashley Herndon made a quick move to get around the Liberty defender marking her, found space and crossed the ball with her right foot to a waiting Ivey in the box, who hit the one-timer into the back of the net.

Junior Sydney Braun-McLeod came close to getting the Dukes an insurance goal in the waining seconds of the game, but the effort culminated in a shot off the post and out of play. The JMU defense held strong to keep Liberty from tallying a second equalizer for the remainder of the game, allowing the Dukes to come out on top.

Rising the Record Boards
With her assist on Rachel Ivey's 32^nd minute game-winning goal, Ashley Herndon has now taken sole possession of 10^th place on the all-time JMU women's soccer career assist leaderboard.

Freshman Spotlight
Forward Carmen Thomas made her collegiate debut for the Dukes on Sunday, making her the eighth true freshman on the JMU roster to see the field in 2015.

Noteworthy
Kelly Kerrigan tallied an assist in both games this weekend, giving her 11 in 65 career appearances.

Coach's Quote
Head Coach David Lombardo this season's results thus far: "I told the girls this is moving week," said Lombardo. "We've got to get away from splitting on weekends, find a way to get six points over the weekend and they stepped up to the challenge."

Next Up
The Dukes will return to the field next Thursday at 7 p.m. when they travel to College Park, Md. to take on the Maryland Terrapins.