KALAMAZOO, Mich. – Five different Broncos scored as the Western Michigan women's soccer team picked up its first win of the season after defeating Detroit Mercy, 5-1, at the WMU Soccer Complex on Sunday afternoon.
WMU (1-1-0) picked up goals from
Mary Dziuba,
Emily Dahl,
Jenna Blackburn,
Cas Flanagan and
Bailey Korhorn. For Dzubia and Flanagan it was their first collegiate goals, while Blackburn netted her team-leading third of the season. Senior forward
Morgan Otteson tallied two assists, while
Mira Pierre-Webster, Korhorn,
Victoria Kyriakopoulos Hannah Redoute and
Madison Salzenstein also picked up assists.
Maggie Rogers made one shot on goal to pick up her first win of the season.
The game was back and forth to start but the Broncos put on the pressure later in the first half. Dziuba gave Western Michigan a 1-0 lead in the 35th minute with a shot from the left corner of the box into the top-right corner of the net after getting a pass from Pierre-Webster.
Julie Ann Piechocki tied it up at 1-1 with just 27 seconds to play in the first half when she fired a shot through traffic and into the net.
WMU put the game out of reach quickly in the second half with goals in the four goals in the span of 14 minutes. Dahl scored from just outside the box for the game-winner, giving the Broncos a 2-1 lead in the 53rd minute. Kyriakopoulos picked up an assist on the game-winner.
Blackburn pushed the lead to 3-1 with a goal from the right edge of the box in the 57th minute. Korhorn played Otteson into the middle of the box and she kicked it out wide to Blackburn for the goal. Just minutes later Otteson played it out to the left in the box for Flanagan and the sophomore netted her first collegiate goal to put the Broncos up 4-1 in the 61st minute.
Korhorn capped off the scoring with her first goal of the season, coming in the 67th minute after finishing off a pass from Redoute. Salzenstein picked up her first collegiate point with the second assist on the goal.
WMU outshot UDM 17-7 overall and held a 11-2 advantage in shots on goal.
The Broncos head back on the road to take on Michigan on Thursday at 7 p.m. before returning to the WMU Soccer Complex to host IUPUI on Sunday at 1 p.m.
