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UD WSOC Beats Rice 5-2 For First Victory
UD WSOC Beats Rice 5-2 For First Victory
Christopher Rieman
Published by Chris R
09-12-2015
Smile UD WSOC Beats Rice 5-2 For First Victory

Sophomore Sidney Leroy and junior Meghan Blank tallied braces as the Dayton Flyers flew past the Rice Owls 5-2 under a steady rain Friday evening at Baujan Field. UD earns their first victory of the year to improve to 1-5-0, while Rice falls to 4-2-1.

Down on confidence after one of the worst season starts in program history, Dayton came into Friday's match looking to manufacture something to feel good about. In order to make that happen, the Flyers needed a stiffer work ethic everywhere on the field to help create an environment for success. Thankfully, they got it for about 55 minutes and that was enough to get their first positive result of the season.

As the match got underway, Dayton wasted no time getting deeper into tackles and making a committed effort to challenge -- and win -- 50/50 balls. Rice committed to it just the same, making for a relatively even battle over the course of the first 10 minutes. Fans could tell however that UD felt their first five performances were not indicative of their talent and were anxious to prove -- to themselves more than anyone -- that they could raise their level and compete to a more typical program standard.

The Flyers pushed forward and kicked balls to the corner flags, opening up space inside for players making runs off the ball. There was less standing around than prior matches and it paid off with better possession and movement in the offensive third of the field. Gaps opened up in the midfield that allowed Nicole Waters and Libby Leedom to lurk in dangerous places that opened up the field to teammates pushing ahead.

As the first half continued, the drizzle soon came, making for a wet surface to overcome. The Flyers were smart about the changing conditions however and began knocking shots on frame to test the Rice goalkeeper Zoe Pochobradsky against the slick grass. It was apparent early on that her hands were not great, a hint to UD mids and strikers to test her at every opportunity.

Dayton got their chance in the 15th minute when Pochobradsky muffed a ball in the box, allowing Meghan Blank to knock it home to an empty net to put the Flyers up 1-0.

Sidney Leroy called her own number just two minutes later, rifling a ball from just beyond the goal box to put UD up 2-0 and seemingly in control of a match for the first time all year. Suddenly, the Flyers had something to feel good about.

Rice countered however and had a couple dangerous chances of their own. But GK Kaelyn Johns came up big in the box, especially on a tip-save over the crossbar to keep Rice off the scoreboard. The Owls had success picking off a few errant passes in the UD defensive third of the field, dribbling perpendicular and attempting shots from long range. Nothing found the back of the net however and UD's back line did just enough to keep things under wraps.

Leroy would score her second goal of the match in the 22nd minute to put UD up 3-0, a lead almost hard to believe considering the offensive struggles of the first five games of the season.

Rice would trim the deficit to 3-1 in the 32nd minute by redirecting a corner kick past Johns to keep the Owls within striking distance, but the celebration was short-lived. Ashley Campbell made it 4-1 just a minute later after cleaning up another mis-handled ball in the Rice goal box. The 4-1 score would hold up until halftime.

Dayton had the better run of play over the first 45 minutes with a 9-5 shot advantage. Rice won the battle of corner kicks 5-2.

Much of the second half lacked the intensity of the first 45 minutes, at least for the Flyers. The Owls got forward very early in the second half and applied pressure inside the UD goal box to force important clears by the Flyer back line. UD had trouble collecting possession and passing it out of their defensive end with purpose, giving Rice the opportunity to re-collect and send more balls into the box.

Unfortunately, a horrible whistle inside the Flyer box gave Rice a PK in the 51st minute they subsequently converted to cut the Dayton lead to 4-2. UD won a high-ball header off a free kick but apparently pushed an Owl player in the process. It was one of the worst PK calls in recent Baujan Field memory.

With just a two-goal lead, the job wasn't finished. The playing conditions continued to deteriorate as the drizzle turned into a steady rain that made for difficult defending and tracking of the ball. The good news is Baujan Field's new natural grass surface performed flawlessly.

Dayton sealed the victory away in the 54th minute when Blank knocked a ball over the goal line before the ball was cleared away. The linesman called it good and UD went up 5-2.

The remaining half hour of the match left a lot to be desired from UD's perspective. The Owls controlled most of the possession and locked the Flyers into a defensive bunker for several lengthy stretches. Dayton lost their speed to loose balls and high-ball challenges in the air were equally problematic. Rice redirected balls back into their offensive half of the field by winning Dayton goal kicks near midfield. The Owls would ultimately out-shoot UD 14-5 in the second half and 19-14 overall, but UD had more shots on frame (10-7).

The match salted away just as the rain slowed down and UD earned a hard-fought victory over an opponent that should do well this year in Conference USA.

Leroy was a huge bright spot for Dayton offensively, working hard to track balls and win tackles to help earn possession near the Owl goal box. Her work ethic rubbed off on other players as Alexis Kiehl, Campbell, Blank, Leedom, and Waters all stepped up their tempo as well. The Flyer back line of Abby Weigel, Kathleen Golterman, Erin O'Malley, and Nadia Pestell defended well over the course of 90 minutes. Of the two goals surrendered, one was on a set piece and another was a gift by the referee. Not bad.

Goalkeeper Kaelyn Johns was steady in goal all night, did extremely well on wet balls in the box, and put most of her goal kicks near midfield. It may have been her most consistent performance of the season.

Friday night's result should come as no surprise however when the work rate is solid and players dig their heels in. The passion lacking over the first three weeks of the season came back tonight -- at least in the first half of play -- and was entirely responsible for the win.

UD will need 90 minutes of passion on Sunday afternoon however as #6 Texas A&M visits Baujan Field. The Aggies are the highest-ranked team to visit UD in at least a decade, and have the tools to reach the College Cup. Rice lost to the Aggies 4-2 earlier in the season.












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