Freshman Ella Smith scored the first two goals of her collegiate career as the Pitt-Greensburg women's soccer team earned a 3-0 victory over Juniata Wednesday at Ridilla Field. The win moved the Bobcats to 3-2 on the season.
Pitt-Greensburg wasted little time establishing control of the match. Riley Gesinski put the Bobcats' first shot on frame just over four minutes in before Smith opened the scoring at the 5:59 mark. Smith's strike was the first goal of her collegiate career and gave UPG an early 1-0 advantage.
The Bobcats continued to pressure the Juniata defense and doubled their advantage in the 21st minute. Isabella Swartz set up Abigail Ault, who found the back of the net at 20:02 to make it 2-0. Pitt-Greensburg continued to create chances throughout the remainder of the opening half, including shots on goal from Tiger Santia and Kathryn Chiado, and carried its two-goal advantage into halftime.
Juniata looked to cut into the deficit early in the second half, but goalkeeper Kira Howcroft kept the Eagles off the scoreboard. Howcroft turned aside attempts in the 53rd and 58th minutes before the Bobcats added to their lead.
Smith struck again at the 61:16 mark, finding the back of the net for the second time to complete the first multi-goal performance of her collegiate career and extend Pitt-Greensburg's lead to 3-0. She nearly added another later in the half, putting another attempt on frame in the 68th minute.
Smith paced the Bobcat attack with five shots, including four on goal, and accounted for two of the team's three goals. Ault finished with three shots and a goal, while Swartz recorded the assist on Ault's first-half tally. Chiado contributed two shots off the bench, including one on goal.
Pitt-Greensburg held a 12-6 advantage in total shots and put nine attempts on goal compared to five for Juniata. The Bobcats also held a 5-4 edge in corner kicks and generated six shots in each half.
At the other end of the field, Howcroft played all 90 minutes and made five saves to record the shutout. The Bobcat defense limited Juniata to three shots in each half and kept the Eagles off the scoreboard for the entirety of the match.
The Bobcats return to action Saturday when they travel to Gwynedd Mercy for a non-conference matchup.
