DES MOINES, Iowa – The Drake women's soccer team got its conference season underway on Saturday evening with a strong showing in a 5-1 rout over Valparaiso.
It didn't take long for the goals to start being added to the scoreboard at Mediacom Stadium and the Bulldogs were the first to strike in the fourth minute of play.
Following the first shot of the match from Valpo, Drake quickly went on the counterattack.
Layla Kelbel carried the ball down the side of the pitch and eventually crossed it into the middle of the box where
Claire Emmerich made one move on her defender, which freed her up for an open shot and buried the ball in the back of the net giving Drake the early lead.
A few minutes after the reset, however, the Beacons capitalized on a Drake turnover in the defensive zone and knotted the match back to even at 1-1. Daisy Boardman started the opportunity by creating the turnover and passed the ball over to Molly O'Rear. O'Rear then proceeded place one past the diving effort of
Addie Ford for the goal.
In the 20th minute, Drake found its response. This time the Bulldogs were benefactors of a turnover by the Beacons in their defensive zone.
Eve Blakey was the one who swooped in and just barely got her shot attempt through the legs of the Valpo keeper to give the lead back to Drake.
Using the momentum it just gained, Drake was right back into scoring position just three minutes later. Following a long pass attempt from just in front of the midfield line,
Isabella Balsley tracked the ball down and was able to get behind her defender. The sophomore ripped a shot away that was initially saved, but she stayed with the play, collected her own rebound and scored on her second chance extending Drake's lead to 3-1, which is where it remained at the halftime horn.
"I thought we had a great start today and our energy level and work rate were superb," Drake head coach
Lindsey Horner said. "When Valpo tied it up early there was a maturity and confidence that we were still in control. We looked dangerous in a variety of ways, both off the shoulder, through quick combinations, and off restarts. It's always good to be able to get more players in the game as our whole roster is so important to who we are and allows us to be able to train the way we like."
After the break, the Bulldogs made fast work again with their fourth goal of the contest. In the 49th minute
Alanna Pennington notched her first goal of the season heading home a score off free kick set piece.
Madelyn Smith was credited with the assist after delivering the attempt into scoring range for Pennington.
Already with a comfortable lead, the Bulldogs added one final goal to its total in the 73rd minute. Blakey found herself in the right place at the right time and scored her second goal of the match controlling a rebound off a blocked shot attempt from
Lauren Kullberg and sending it careening off the hands of the Valpo keeper into the net.
"I think we were very good tonight, but this still isn't the best version of ourselves, so if we stay hungry to keep improving and build off today's performance, I like the thought of how high our potential could be," Horner added. "Our next trip is difficult in distance and opponents, so we will need to stay grounded in our short training week."
The Bulldogs tallied a staggering 22 shots in the match compared the just six for the Beacons. 16 of the 22 attempts came on net for Drake. The Bulldogs also gained the edge in the corner kick battled, 5-4.
Blakey led the Bulldogs with her brace totaling seven shots on the night. The Newcastle, England, native has now upped her goal total this seven to seven and has produced three multi-goal performances. Balsley was next in line with four shots and has now scored three goals in the last five matches. Meanwhile, Kelbel, Kullberg, and Smith each picked up assists and Ford tallied three saves in net.
Drake will hit the road for its next contest on Thursday, Sep. 25 as it travels to Nashville, Tennessee to take on Belmont. Kickoff from the Music City is slated for 6:30 p.m. CT.
