October 22nd, 2023 by WCBC Radio
The Frostburg State Women's Soccer team cruised to a 10-0 win over Salem (WV) on a chilly Saturday evening.
FSU struggled to get going on offense in the early stages, as a high Tigers line drew several offside calls. Senior Toni Fiocco-Mizer was able to break the trap on a couple occasions but dragged her shot wide both times. Senior Dez Mortimer took the first shot on goal, with an effort from just outside the box that was right at Salem keeper Sarah Cabrera.
With just under 10 minutes gone, Fiocco-Mizer found the breakthrough, being played in by junior Madi Allen and coolly finishing past Cabrera for a 1-0 lead. The Bobcats kept their offense ticking, as senior Lela Clark fired just over the bar, followed by Allen seeing a shot saved and another block, with Mortimer having her effort come back off the bar.
Sophomore Carly Gillette would be the one to get the second goal of the night, charging through the Tiger backline and finishing with her left foot to double the lead. The match continued to be one-way traffic, as both juniors Keely Knotts and Cat Smith had shots blocked, then senior Kayla Robinson fired just wide before Cabrera made saves against Knotts and sophomore Jayme Sooy.
A couple of quick-fire goals a minute apart effectively put the result to rest, as junior Mei Homman played a brilliant through ball to Knotts, who slotted home the third goal, followed by junior Mackenzie Alonso capitalizing on a Salem mistake at the back, arrowing her effort into the bottom left corner for a 4-0 advantage.
Sophomore Hannah Clagett enjoyed an impressive performance off the bench, regularly using her speed to get in behind and cause the Tiger defense problems. She was rewarded with a smoothly taken goal on 33 minutes, cutting inside the box on her right foot and getting enough power on her shot to take the ball into the net after Cabrera had gotten a hand to it.
Much like Clagett, freshman Amanda Hawbecker made her presence known with a pair of late assists to close out the half, the first being to Sooy, who headed home the former's cross, then putting a corner kick back into play that junior Cat Smith was able to swivel and fire home for a 7-0 halftime lead. A late free kick provided the lone offense for Salem, as junior Katie Sterne made a comfortable save in goal to preserve the shutout bid.
The start of the second half gave several Bobcats the chance to impress off the bench, one being freshman Grace Sarver, who was determined to get herself a goal. She found herself unlucky on a pair of occasions, striking the bar with a chipped effort, then curling a shot that came off the inside of the far post but away from goal within the first seven minutes.
Freshman Chelsea Pettyjohn began to assert herself on offense, forcing Cabrera into a pair of saves, then having another shot blocked before finally finding the back of the net, being the first to react to a loose ball in the box for an 8-0 lead. Sooy, Hawbecker, sophomore Hannah Lebo, and freshman Ella Combs all had their chances at goal, but each were denied by Cabrera.
It would be Pettyjohn to earn her brace for the next score, as sophomore Morgan Mrizek did well to latch onto a ball in the box and cross to the center of goal, where the former was ready to head in with just over 10 minutes remaining. With seven minutes until the final whistle, Hawbecker was gifted a chance to get a goal, as the Tigers were called for a handball in the box, resulting in a penalty kick. Hawbecker blasted her shot onto the crossbar, then Cabreara made a diving save on the follow-up volley to deny the Frostburg midfielder.
Mrizek wouldn't let her teammate end the game scoreless, as she played Hawbecker into the box, where her goal-bound effort took a slight deflection into the roof of the net, ending the scoring at 10-0 in favor of FSU.
The Bobcats fired off 48 shots in the match, with 23 of them being on goal. Nine different players scored for Frostburg, as Pettyjohn led the way with two, while four players provided assists, both Hawbecker and Mrizek accounting for two each. The 10 goals scored were the most in a match for FSU since recording the same result against Pitt-Greensburg in 2010.
With the win, Frostburg improves to 13-1-1 overall, while Salem falls to 0-12-1. The Bobcats will come back to Bobcat Stadium on Wednesday, October 25 for a 5 p.m. match against Wheeling. Information and updates will be posted to frostburgsports.com.
