Akron Loses Thriller Against A10 Powerhouse Dayton, 3-2

Friday, September 7

Dayton, OH

7 PM

University of Akron

2-3-1

University of Dayton

4-2-0

Akron

Dayton

Photo by: Jeff Harwell

Akron Loses Thriller Against A10 Powerhouse Dayton, 3-2

September 07 | Women's Soccer

Box Score

Box Score | Box Score (PDF)

DAYTON, Ohio– Early offense by the Akron women's soccer team which featured a pair of first-half goals by junior Ashley Amato (Pittsburgh, Pa.) and senior Shea O'Brien (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio), but fell just short against a quality Dayton team from the Atlantic 10 Conference in a 90 battle against the Flyers on Friday night.

"I thought we were excellent in the first half and really took it to them, but we allowed them back in the game," said head coach Noreen Herlihy. "We gave it everything we had but made a couple of mistakes and good teams will punish you for that. Often that simply comes down to a bit of experience. Having said that, we gave it everything we had and we can take a lot from the game moving forward."

The Akron offense was led by Amato who garnered a team-high three shots against the Flyers defense. O'Brien added an additional two shots, while sophomore Abigail Brown (Batavia, Ohio) and freshman Carly Pcholinsky (South Park, Pa.) chipped in one shot each to help pave the way for the Zips.

In the net, freshman Erin McKinney (Belvidere, Ill.) made her fourth start between the pipes for the Zips. In all 90 minutes of play, McKinney made seven saves.

Akron got off to a fast start after taking advantage of a Dayton mistake in their own offensive third. A Flyers defender made a play to clear the ball out of the Zips box but failed in the attempt. Freshman Sydney Worthy (Groveport, Ohio) corralled the ball and chipped it into the box to Amato. The Zips forward gathered and fired the ball into the back of the net for the early goal and her third of the season. Worthy earned the first assist of her career on the play.

Just seven minutes later, the Zips extended its lead to 2-0 at the 13:22 mark of the game. Dayton was called for a foul inside the box resulting in a penalty kick for Akron. The veteran O'Brien took to the line and notched her first goal of the season beating the keeper.

Akron is now a perfect 3-for-3 from the PK line this season.

The Flyers worked their way back into the contest scoring two goals prior to the end of the first half to knot the contest up heading to the halftime break.

Dayton would again find success offensively in the second half for the eventual game-winning goal in the 69'.

The Zips southwest Ohio road trip continues on Sunday, Sept. 9, as Akron heads to Cincinnati, Ohio to take on Xavier. The Zips and Musketeers are slated for a 1 p.m. first kick from the XU Soccer Complex.