Liberty University
(4-0, 3-0BIG EAST)
Temple
(1-3, 0-3BIG EAST)
Liberty Shuts Out Temple 2-0, Saturday Afternoon in First Game of Weekend
2/27/2021 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
The visiting Liberty Flames earned their first shutout of the 2021 campaign, blanking Temple 2-0 at Howarth Field on Saturday afternoon.
With the win, Liberty improves to 4-0 for a second straight season and keeps pace with Old Dominion (3-1, 3-0 BIG EAST) atop the BIG EAST standings at 3-0. Temple drops its third straight contest and is now 1-3 overall and 0-3 in conference play.
A pair of Lady Flames freshmen were key contributors in the victory. Freshman forward Julie Daels scored her first career collegiate goal in the second quarter, while first-year goalkeeper Azul Iritxity Irigoyen (3-0) notched her first career shutout with a six-save effort. Liberty's leading goal scorer, Daniella Rhodes, added her team-best seventh goal of the season in the third period.
Scoring Summary
25' – LIBERTY – Julie Daels (unassisted)
40' – LIBERTY – Daniella Rhodes (Bethany Dykema and Charlotte Vaanhold) | Penalty Corner
Goalkeepers
W: Azul Iritxity Irigoyen 3-0, six saves
L: Cristina Carotenuto 1-3, five saves
Turning Point
Liberty capitalized on its only penalty corner of the first half. Daels collected a rebound following a save from Owls goalkeeper Cristin Carotenuto and buried her first career goal into the right side of the cage at the 24:31 mark. Daels' goal, which made it 1-0 Lady Flames at the time, turned out to be the game-winning goal.
Liberty tacked on an insurance goal later in the third quarter in the 40th minute, as Rhodes sent a strike into the left side. Her goal was assisted by Bethany Dykema and Charlotte Vaanhold. Iritxity Irigoyen and the Lady Flames defense faced steady pressure throughout the match but preserved the shutout. Temple won five penalty corners in the fourth quarter but came up empty on each attempt.
Key Stats & Notes
• Temple outshot Liberty 8-3 in the first half and 15-11 on the day. The Lady Flames put seven shots on frame, compared to six for the Owls. Temple held a 9-8 edge in penalty corners.
• Rhodes' third quarter goal was the 20th goal of her career. The sophomore forward from Durban, South Africa is one of only nine players in program history with 20 or more career goals, and she's done so in only 22 career games.
• Jodie Conolly paced the visitors with four shots (two on goal). Rhodes finished with three shots, all on goal.
• Today was the first game the Lady Flames have played this season in which they did not employ two goalkeepers. In Liberty's first three games of the season, Iritxity Irigoyen and redshirt freshman Santia McLaughlin split time evenly in net. Iritxity Irigoyen is 3-0 with a 0.80 goals-against average, nine saves and a .818 save percentage in four appearances.
• Liberty now leads the all-time series with Temple 6-1, including a 5-0 mark in BIG EAST contests. In those five conference games, the Lady Flames have outscored the Owls 27-4.
• Saturday marked Liberty's first shutout since a 2-0 home triumph over No. 25 Providence on Nov. 1, 2019.
• The Lady Flames are 4-1 all-time at Temple's Howarth Field. Its only setback came to UConn in the 2016 BIG EAST Field Hockey Championship title game (3-2 final on Nov. 6, 2016).
Up Next
The Lady Flames and Owls will meet again on Sunday. The game is scheduled to begin at noon and can be seen on OwlsTV.
Team Stats
DAELS, Julie (1)
GOAL by LIBERTY DAELS, Julie (FIRST GOAL), goal number 1 for season.
24:31
RHODES, Daniella (7)
Assisted By: DYKEMA, Bethany , VAANHOLD, Charlotte
GOAL by LIBERTY RHODES, Daniella, Assist by DYKEMA, Bethany and VAANHOLD, Charlotte, goal number 7 for season.
39:56
