Bubnick Goal Carries Jackets to Victory Over Beavers

DEFIANCE, Ohio – In a tight matchup of arch rivals, the DC women's soccer team came away with an important 1-0 Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference win over the Bluffton Beavers on Wednesday, October 24. Sophomore Lindsay Bubnick nailed a beautiful shot off the back post for the game-winner.

Things got dicey right off the bat for Defiance, as the Beavers snuck a loose ball deep into DC territory just two minutes into the match. The ball pulled goalie Claire Turner out of the net and bounced over her head, but sophomore Chelsie Moyer came up huge by swatting the ball out, as it was about to go into the net.

However, after that big defensive play, the Lady Jackets really struggled to get anything going offensively. Possessions stalled with missed passes mixed with multiple offside penalties. Bluffton outshot DC 5-to-2 on the half, but the defense held the visitors scoreless to go into intermission with the match knotted at zero.

As the second half got underway, Defiance started to take advantage of its opportunities and put shots on the goal. The Lady Jackets racked up more than double their shot production in the first half by registering five in the first 18 minutes of play, while also holding the Beavers to one.

Finally in the 69th minute, DC broke through when Bubnick got the ball near the Bluffton end line and crossed it right over the goalies reach and off the far post into the net for a 1-0 Yellow Jacket advantage. It was her fifth score on the season.

In the final 20 minutes, Defiance played keep away and rode the slim advantage to victory. The win is a huge one for the Lady Jackets, as it not only makes them one step closer to reaching the conference tournament, but also was the ninth win of the season. That is the most wins for the program since joining the HCAC in 2000 and the win secured the squads first winning season since 2004.

DC improves to 9-5-4 (4-2-2 HCAC), while the Beavers drop to 3-11-1 (1-5-1 HCAC).

Defiance will take to the pitch Saturday, October 27 for senior day and its final regular season match of the season. The team will battle the Hanover Panthers for a spot in the HCAC conference tournament. Play is set to kickoff at 1 p.m.