Steele Posts Shutout, Knight Nets Brace in Milligan Women’s Soccer Triumph at Bluefield

Ella Sawa dished out the initial assist of the evening, crediting her with setting up the game-winner from Lauren Hawkley
Ella Sawa dished out the initial assist of the evening, crediting her with setting up the game-winner from Lauren Hawkley
September 25, 2024

BLUEFIELD, Va. – The Milligan University women's soccer team entered Wednesday night's matchup with Bluefield University on a three-game winning streak. The battle with the Rams would add to that momentum, as the Buffs ran away with a 5-0 triumph from the State of Virginia.

The Buffs are now at a .500 winning percentage (4-4-1) for the season and are an impressive 4-1-0 in Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) play.

The flow of the bout was dictated heavily by the Buffaloes, as they scored early and often. In the 20th minute, Lauren Hawkley scored the game's first goal on an assist by Ella Sawa. Then, just a few minutes later in the 24th minute, Mariah Shull scored an unassisted goal to make it 2-0 Buffs. After four additional minutes, Shelby Knight notched a tally in the 28th minute to make it a 3-0 score entering the half.

After back-and-forth play with no goals scored in the second half, Milligan added their fourth goal on a Halle Steele shot in the 74th minute that was assisted by Shull. Finally, Knight converted again to pick up a brace for the game in the 81st minute.

Milligan posted a 14-3 shot advantage over the course of the 90-minute contest. Knight and Shull took three shots in the bout that all ended up on goal. Shull added a pair of assists to her line. The two of them combined for three of the team's five goals. Steele also took three shots, with two of them threatening the net, one of which was a goal. Hawkley was on goal with both of her shots, scoring on one of them. Anna Grace Fuller picked up her first collegiate assist in the game, while Natalie Roper, McKinna Murr and Kara McDaniel took the remainder of the three shots.

The freshman, Annie Steele, started her first match of the season for the Buffaloes, and fared well. She stopped both shots on goal that she faced to help Milligan to the shutout triumph.

Now, Milligan comes back home to host Johnson University at Anglin Field at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 28, looking to push their streak to five straight triumphs within the AAC.