Women’s soccer: EMU closer to first round home game after win over Randolph

The EMU soccer women held off visiting Randolph College Tuesday night to pick up a huge 2-1 win, drawing the teams into a tie for eighth place in the ODAC standings. Now with the head-to-head tie-breaker, the Royals have knocked Randolph from the possibility of hosting an ODAC Tournament first round game.

Eastern Mennonite (8-8-1 / 4-5 ODAC) would clinch a first round home game if they can upset nationally-ranked Lynchburg on the road in their regular season finale this weekend, or if 10th-place Guilford loses either of their remaining games against Emory & Henry and Randolph-Macon.

Even with numerous scenarios still to play out in the season’s final days, the women know they will finish somewhere between seventh and tenth in the ODAC standings, and therefore will play a game next Monday. The tournament quarterfinals get underway on Wednesday, Nov. 2.

With all of that hanging over their heads at the start of the contest against the WildCats (4-10-1 / 4-6 ODAC), EMU calmed some nerves with a goal in the 17th minute. Marcy Smucker (Woodward, Pa./Penns Valley) made a push up the right side before finding midfielder Emily Hostetler (Marshallville, Ohio/Smithville) running on the left. Hostetler took the pass and fired a great shot off the right post and into the net for her first collegiate goal.

The 1-0 margin stood until the 52nd minute when the Royals padded it. Kylie Paul (Hellertown, Pa./Saucon Valley) lofted in a corner kick from the right side and junior defender Mikaela Zook (Millersburg, Ind./Northridge) knocked it in from inside the box to make it 2-0. It was the first goal as a Royal for Zook, who played both defender and forward in two seasons at Hesston College and left as that program’s career scoring leader.

With their backs to the wall, Randolph brought up numbers for the rest of the half and tested EMU’s defense. A turnover inside of midfield turned into a quick through ball and goal from the WildCats’ Delaney Doyle, cutting the lead in half with 23:27 left to play. But the Royals turned away a pair of corners after that, and keeper Leah Wenger (Harrisonburg, Va./Eastern Mennonite) earned the final of her three saves to finish off the win.

Randolph had a slight 10-9 edge in shots, although Eastern Mennonite put seven of theirs on target compared to only four for the WildCats.

Saturday’s start time at Lynchburg is 1:00pm.