BLACKSBURG – After a scoreless first half, the No. 25 Virginia Tech Hokies found the back of the net three times in just over a six-minute span to put away visiting Marshall, while three goalkeepers helped Tech keep a clean sheet in its 3-0 victory in its first scrimmage of the 2019 season on Saturday evening.
The Hokies dominated play in the first half, outshooting the Thundering Herd by a 10-2 count, but none of those shots were on net. That changed early in the second half, just 1:42 after the break to be exact, as Holly Rose Weber took a pass from Mikayla Mance to tally the first goal of the contest.
It took Weber just 83 seconds to repeat the feat, this time set up by Emily Gray, who led the Hokies with six assists in 2018.
Tech continued its pressure scoring just five minutes later. Allyson Brown took a shot that Marshall's goalkeeper Lindsay Lamgley saved but could not control. Brown settled the rebound and put it in the back of the net to make a three-goal advantage.
"The game was good. It was useful for us as far as learning about our team, to see what we have, to see where we are at just five games into the season," said Tech head coach Chugger Adair. "I was please with it because we were able to get everyone some minutes. We did a good job of possession and creating a lot of chances, but we have to be cleaner in front of goal, that's something we need to continue to work on.
"Starting that second period, we really took the game over by taking those chances. Holly, her first two touches of her college career were goals, which were great for her and a good building spot for us and I think overall for our team to build off the game was great. I was happy with the performance, the effort, the energy was good today and we're just looking forward to getting back to training and working on what we need to and moving forward into next week's game and getting better."
Mandy McGlynn got the start in net for Tech and made one save in just over 42 minutes played. Alice Hamel did not face a shot in 28 minutes of action and S.A. Phillips also made one save as she finished off the match to keep the Herd off the board.
The Hokies outshot the Marshall 21-3 in the game and held an 8-5 advantage in corner kicks.
Tech will play one more scrimmage this upcoming Saturday, traveling to Fairfax, Virginia to face the George Mason Patriots. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.
The Hokies open the regular season with a home weekend against Liberty (Thursday, Aug. 22, 7 p.m.) and Cincinnati (Sunday, Aug. 25, 1 p.m.).
The ONLY way to see Tech matches this season – other than in-person – is on the ACC Network. CLICK HERE to see if your provider is currently slated to carry the network.
Gallery: (8/10/2019) 2019 WOMEN'S SOCCER EXH. vs MARSHALL