Smith’s two scores lead Lady Jacket’s to first HCAC victory

DEFIANCE, Ohio – The Defiance women's soccer team was not affected by the subpar Saturday weather and played one of its best matches of the year, as it defeated the Franklin Grizzlies by a score of 3-0.

DC snapped a five-game winless skid and upped its record to 4-9-2 (1-3-1 Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference), while the Grizzlies fall to 8-6-0 (2-3-0 HCAC).

It didn't take long for the Purple and Gold to find the net, as senior Karly Smith (Parma, Ohio/Parma) rung up her fifth goal of the season in the ninth minute. The forward received a nice pass from sophomore Erica Islas (Lockhart, Tex./Lockhart) and placed it over the keeper's outstretched arms giving the Yellow Jackets an early 1-0 lead.

Only four minutes later, junior Lindsay Bubnick (Vandalia, Ohio/Butler) got behind the defense and had a good look at the net, but her shot sailed wide left.

Defiance dominated ball control throughout the rest of the half, taking multiple shots at the goal, but Franklin's defense held tough and the teams went into intermission with a 1-0 DC advantage.

In the second period, the Purple and Gold kept up the pressure and racked up a couple of attempts at the net right off the bat.

Finally in the 63rd min, Smith took advantage of a lazy pass from a Franklin defender back to the goalie and stole it away and chipped it into the wide open net for score number two on the afternoon. Smith's team leading sixth goal of the season pushed the DC lead to 2-0.

Defiance then sealed the victory with a third and final score by junior Maegan Redick (Lima, Ohio/Shawnee). The forward streaked down the right side of the field, beating her defender in the sprint and then rocketed a shot into the lower left 90 for her fourth goal of the season.

It was the Lady Jackets first shutout since they defeated Westminster 2-0 on the first day of September. DC truly dominated the match from start to finish, racking up 18 shots (11 on goal) to Franklin's seven (five on goal).

Sophomore goalie Claire Turner (Medina, Ohio/Cloverleaf) was perfect on the afternoon, as she accounted for five saves in the shutout.

Defiance will return to play Wednesday, October 23 when it travels to Anderson, Ind. to take on the Ravens. The night match is slated to begin at 6:30 pm.