Gophers Stick Pair of Goals Against Stingy Blue Jays

ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. — Goucher became only the fourth team to score a goal against Elizabethtown in 2014, but the two the Gophers put up this afternoon weren't enough to produce a Landmark Conference victory over the Blue Jays.

It was already 2-0 in favor of Elizabethtown when Brianna Hite (Port Republic, Md./Calvert) tallied her third goal of the season to put Goucher on the scoreboard at 12:26. By the time the Gophers added their second goal early in the second half, however, the Blue Jays had opened up a 4-1 advantage and were on their way to a 6-2 triumph.

Elizabethtown's Kacey Cerankowski opened the scoring with an unassisted goal at 3:22 and Trisha Clark put the Blue Jays (6-3, 1-1 Landmark) up 2-0 when she knocked in a deflected pass from the right sideline at 7:41.

Lindsey Puopolo (Glen Arm, Md./St. Timothy's) set up Hite's goal that reduced Goucher's deficit to 2-1 with a long pass up the center of the field, but Elizabethtown regained a two-goal lead when Cerankowski received a cross from the right side and knocked the ball in at the right post.

Cerankowski notched her third goal of the game and team-leading seventh of the season just 2:13 into the second half, but the Gophers (3-7-1, 0-2 Landmark) answered with one of their own only 12 seconds later. Hite picked up an assist on the play as she lobbed a pass over the top to Stephanie Budrock (Clark, N.J./Arthur L. Johnson). who finished by chipping the ball over the opposing keeper.

It was also Budrock's third goal of the season.

The score remained 4-2 until a goal by Maria Boretti in the 63rd minute, which was followed by a goal from Callie McClanahan in the 78th minute.

The Blue Jays, who are in their first season as members of the Landmark Conference and were the last Division III women's soccer team in the nation to surrender a goal in 2014, wound up out-shooting the Gophers, 22-9.

Lexi Rudolph (Kensington, Md./Our Lady of Good Counsel), was back in Goucher's starting lineup as the goalkeeper for the first time since the Lancaster Bible game on September 9, made six saves.

Three of the Gophers' next four games will be played on Beldon Field, starting with one against Arcadia on Tuesday at 7 p.m.