The Dayton Flyers walked off Baujan Field last Sunday afternoon wondering what happened in a 1-0 loss to Marquette that snapped a school record 17-game winning streak. It was a performance that left a lot to be desired, but any good team deserves a chance to atone for past mistakes and show fans that it was an anomaly rather than a sign of things to come. The 3-0 victory over the Wright State Raiders Friday night on the heels of a Tesia Kozlowski hat trick restored the winning ways and started a new home winning streak of one. Modest yes, but a foundation nonetheless to build on and reestablish that Flyer dominance. Dayton improves to 4-1 on the season while WSU falls to 1-4.

In a match that paused for a moment of silence to remember the tragedy of September 11, the largest crowd of the season (1359) saw a match that went largely uneventful for most of the evening. The first half favored the Flyers as the home team pushed players forward and, unlike the Marquette match, won the battle of the loose balls in the middle of the field. This meant everything because Dayton seized the opportunity to distribute balls to the wings that kept the Raider defense backtracking. By stretching the defense, Dayton created more space in the middle, and more space in the middle meant more chances to start the attack on the WSU side of the field. Not to say Wright State was fodder however because they pushed forward as well with counterattacks and managed to earned a first half corner kick as well as a couple potentially dangerous balls in the box.

The Flyers were clearly more physical however and WSU was forced to foul on a number of occasions to the displeasure of the Raider contingent. This was especially good to see since UD was on the other end of the physical play a week earlier and obviously put an emphasis on throwing some muscle around. Freshman forward Reba Sedlacek set the tone, shielding the ball from Raider players and making certain most of the pushing and shoving came from her.

Dayton’s persistence paid off in the 27th minute as Kozlowski notched her first goal of the game on a shot from 23 yards out. It was a goal that took a lot of the pressure off and Wright State appeared to realize that getting two goals to win the game were relatively slim.

The second half was much like the first. Dayton controlled play, but neither side could put together enough passes to give the match any ebb and flow. In what turned into a match of persistence and opportunity, the Flyers cashed in on the scoreboard on two more Kozlowski goals — in the 76th minute on a one-on-one breakaway with the Raider goalkeeper and in the 89th minute on a rebound from 10 yards out.

What ended up a 3-0 victory and the third shutout of the season was a match that never seemed to grab the fan’s attention. Neither side put very many balls on goal and other than an Erin Showalter free kick that bounced off the crossbar, most of the offensive chances on both sides were snuffed out rather easily. And that’s why Friday night’s victory can be characterized as workman-like. Nothing really stood out, yet nothing stood out like a sore thumb either. Dayton outshot WSU 26-5 but many of them were not on goal. Dayton also had the edge in corner kicks at 8-1. No doubt the better team won, but the Flyers can still improve.

Freshman Jacqueline Luehrs had a terrific game at left back, showing her speed on a number of occasions to shake off attackers in the defensive third of the field. She also pushed the ball forward and won most of the loose balls and headers in her general direction. Luehrs continues to make progress and looks promising. Freshman Katie Lowstuter performed equally well. For those fans missing the foot skills of the departed Kara Kenney, Lowstuter is cut from the same cloth and has enough juke and jive in her feet to cut past defenders with the ball at her feet. In fact, a more assertive Lowstuter could go a long way if she trusts those skills as too many players look for the pass when they should take players one-on-one and go straight to goal. Expect Lowstuter’s minutes to increase. Judi Aschenbrener made the most of her minutes, hustling on offense and turning on the jets several times to force Raider mistakes. And Tesia Kozlowski made the most of her chances by knocking in three goals to pace the scoring.

In all, it wasn’t a thing of beauty, but a 3-0 victory over your crosstown rival is always nice. Having said that, Wright State is struggling a bit and is certainly not at the level of Marquette — or Michigan State. The Spartans are on tap on Sunday in what is a day for redemption for the Flyer team. MSU up-ended #19 Kentucky 2-0 Friday night in Lexington and are unbeaten and unscored upon. Last week Dayton had a chance to prove they were among the region’s elite and got humbled. A week later, they’ve been given a second chance to show everyone that the Marquette loss was just a bad day at the office. But it will take a much better effort than Friday and a much better effort than last Sunday to beat the Spartans. Only the best effort of the season will do and if the Flyers don’t take the field with the intention of knocking someone’s block off, it could be another long day. Second chances don’t come often, and they especially don’t come often at home. Whatever happens Sunday, there will be no excuses either way. The opportunity to redeem has been given, and fans must wait to see if they take advantage of it.