CHESTERTOWN — After only two matches into the 2024 soccer season, sophomores Kaileigh Brady and Gina Phillips already have doubled their goal totals from a year ago.
Each has scored twice for Washington, which is 2-0 after defeating non-conference opponents Grove City and Marymount in the first weekend of play.
Brady netted the first and last goals in Friday night’s 3-2 defeat of Grove City, netting what held up as the game-winner in the 88th minute.
Phillips scored twice in the first half Sunday afternoon in the 3-0 shutout of Marymount.
Her shot that nestled into the upper left corner in the 10th minute held up as the winner, and she tacked on an insurance goal in the 19th minute.
Freshman Lindsey Nguyen assisted on both Phillips’ tallies.
Washington extended its lead to 3-0 in the 26th minute on sophomore Audrey MacNair’s unassisted goal.
The locals had the upper hand in shots in the first half, 9-1, and finished with a 16-4 advantage.
Coach Tom Reilly, beginning his eighth year here, made ample use of his depth and called on 13 players off the bench.
Olivia Allen was required to make only three saves to preserve the clean sheet.
She got a little help in the 66th minute when Elinda Carballo’s shot careened off the crossbar.
Also a sophomore, Allen (2-0) already has twice as many wins as she did last year when she went 1-2-3 with three shutouts in 10 matches.
In the season opener Friday night on the Kibler pitch in Chestertown, Grove City (0-1-1) scored twice in the span of five and a half minutes in the second half to deadlock at 2-all.
Brady opened the scoring in the 39th minute, gathering in the rebound of a team save off of a Nguyen shot from about 10 yards out to give the home side a 1-0 lead into halftime.
Brady’s second goal of the night, off an assist from classmate Sophie Kilbride with 2 minutes, 59 seconds remaining, restored Washington’s lead for good, 3-2.
A Kilbride goal, her first at the collegiate level, gave the Shore ladies a 2-0 lead in the 53rd minute. After receiving a pass from Amity Harrington, Kilbride chipped the ball over the head of net-minder Courtney Lisman from around 25 yards out.
About three minutes later, senior midfielder Emma Herrmann, the 2023 Presidents’ Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year, broke through for Grove City.
Five minutes after that, Herrmann beat Allen again with a penalty kick to level the score at 2-all in the 61st minute.
Washington finished with a 19-9 edge in shots, but Grove City got a solid effort from Lisman, who was credited with seven saves on 10 shots on frame.
This was the first meeting between the two programs.
Last year as the PAC champion, Grove City (14-5-1) was an NCAA Division III Tournament qualifier. Herrmann earned All-America recognition after leading the conference with 20 goals and 43 points.
NEXT UP: Washington is home 7 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 4 against Salisbury.
Salisbury (1-0-1) settled for a 1-1 tie with Rutgers-Camden in the season opener on Friday, followed by a 2-1 victory over Greensboro on Saturday in the Seahawk Classic at St. Mary’s College of Maryland.
