The Kent State soccer team earned an impressive 2-1 win over rival Akron on Sunday, powered by timely scoring and a strong defensive effort. The victory moves the Golden Flashes to 5-4-4 overall (3-2-1 MAC) this season.
Sophomore midfielder Ava Lukyan and sophomore forward Jules Dolinski each netted their first goals of the year in the win.
“Great goals today from Jules Dolinski and Ava Lukyan,” coach Rob Marinaro said. “Great set ups and distribution from the team to set them up.”
THE BREAKDOWN
Kent State controlled the pace early in the match, applying pressure on the Zips defense. In the 19th minute, Dolinski beat an Akron defender down the left side and fired a high right shot into the net to give the Flashes a 1-0 lead. Senior defender Kelsey Salopek recorded the assist.
“I loved the effort and work rate that the team gave today,” Marinaro said. “We were very strong today on creating and keeping possession of the ball.”
The Flashes’ defense held steady in the second half, continuing to frustrate the Zips’ attack. Both sides struggled to create chances until the 81st minute, when Lukyan scored her first goal of the season on a high right shot—once again assisted by Salopek—to extend Kent State’s lead to 2-0.
“Defensively, [we were] very strong with a bit of a lapse late, but they held tight for the win,” Marinaro said. “We keep the battle going because the team is working so hard right now.”
In the 81st minute, sophomore midfielder Ava Lukyan scored a high right goal for her first goal of the season to give the Flashes a two-score lead. The goal once again was assisted by senior defenseman Kelsey Salopek.
Shortly after in the 84th minute, Zips junior defenseman Jordanne Oberhaus nailed a high left shot to put the pressure back on the Flashes defense.
“Once we went up two we matched up defensively to kill the game,” Marinaro said. “It was very good, but there was one play where we did not work hard enough and they made us pay.”
With time running out on the Zips, the Flashes were able to hold strong defensively and survive the final minutes to secure the win.
The Flashes dominated the stat sheet early. KSU had over half its total shots within the first half. The Flashes also outshot the Zips 11 to five, with four of the Flashes’ shots on net while only two of the Zips’ shots made it on net. The Flashes had their second highest number of corner kicks in a game with seven on the night.
Junior goalie Leah Shaffer remained solid in the net, as she had one save on the game. She has 52 saves on the season so far.
UP NEXT
The Flashes return to Zoeller field on Thursday to take on the Ohio Bobcats. The Bobcats are 3-6-4 (1-2-3) on the season so far. The Bobcats are coming off of a tough loss to Ball State last Thursday.
“We want to keep creating opportunities and give our forwards best chances for success,” Marinaro said.
Emily Bezjak is a reporter. Contact her at [email protected].
