ALLENTOWN, Pa.- The Franklin & Marshall women's soccer team (4-1-1, 1-0 Centennial Conference) were three-goals clear inside of 25 minutes in their Centennial Conference season opener at Muhlenberg (3-2-1, 0-1 Centennial Conference) , winning 3-0 on Saturday.
Ashley Inacio's brace led a Diplomat attack that produced 34 total shots, 16 shots on goal, and three shots in the first half hour.
Emerson McDonald scored the opening goal for her second goal of the season, while
Grace Craig and
Katherine Finnerty registered assists.
Lucy Fleming logged four saves in 65 minutes of a combined shutout with
Molly DeBrandt.Â
F&M forced four saves before McDonald scored the game's opening goal in the 20th minute.
Grace Craig's outswinging corner kick found McDonald who rose above her defender at the far post for a headed finish into the top-left corner.
The Diplomats went on to double the lead inside of a minute of that goal. F&M worked quickly through the Mules' lines in the buildup to the goal in a sequence that involved five different Diplomats that began with a Craig throw-in back to back to
Meghan Ross in the defensive third. From there, she played a ball to headed down at midfield by McDonald to Inacio. She then found Finnerty with a ball down the right line, and Finnerty delivered a cross back to Inacio at the top of the box. She took a few touches to her left to create space before firing low past the keeper from 12 yards away.
Inacio completed her brace just four minutes after her opener, completing a three-goal run in five minutes and three seconds. McDonald won the ball on a high press before it ended with Finnerty near the left corner flag. She dribbled up the line, creating space away from her defender before curling a shot into the top-right corner from the corner of the box.
F&M created four more shots on goal before halftime, but the score remained at 3-0. In total, F&M outshot Muhlenberg 19-4 in the first half, while they maintained a 15-4 advantage in the second half, but the scoreline ultimately stayed at 3-0.Â
The Diplomats host their first home conference game against Washington College on Wednesday, September 23, at 7 p.m.
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