SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. - The No. 22 Bloomsburg women's soccer team went back on the road and picked up a PSAC win over Shippensburg on Wednesday evening.  

The Huskies (5-0, 2-0 PSAC East) handed the Raiders (1-1-2, 0-1-2 PSAC East) their first defeat of the season with help from a well-executed set piece. Daryn Savage (Bensalem, Pa./Archbishop Wood) stood over the ball inside the offensive half of the field, whizzing a ball at the near post, where Haley Bull (Bloomsburg, Pa./Central Columbia) cut inside and got her left foot on the ball to find the bottom corner and provide Bloomsburg with the lone and decisive goal.

The Huskies managed the game well to close the contest, anchoring down defensively despite Shippensburg's desperate efforts to find an equalizer. Bloomsburg fended off a 9-2 shot difference in the second half, with four of the attempts coming inside the final 10 minutes.

How It Happened:
The Huskies opened the game in relentless pursuit of the opening goal, with seven of the team's nine first-half shots coming within a 12-minute window in the early proceedings of the contest. Anika Krasnai (Lancaster, Pa./Manheim Township) and Olivia Thompson (Pottstown, Pa./Owen J. Roberts) nearly linked up for the first goal after Krasnai cut inside from her position on the right. The ball settled in front of Thompson's feet, with the forward's initial attempt blocked before a battle on the ball resulted in a follow-up attempt going out of play.

Krasnai continued to apply pressure and was nearly inches away from getting on the board in the 10th minute. Taking on a defender, the junior created enough space to put enough power on a curling ball that rattled off the left post and was pushed off the line by Shippensburg goalkeeper Kristin Brown. Lindsey Bull (Bloomsburg, Pa./Central Columbia) challenged Brown with Bloomsburg's next scoring opportunity, as a high-arcing ball from a set piece forced the goalkeeper to extend for a catch. Emma Wilkinson (Smithtown, N.Y./Smithtown West) was the next to take a crack at finding the back of the net, with the senior's effort cutting in from the left wing trickling wide of the near post.

With a 7-1 advantage in shots generated approaching the 30-minute mark of the contest, the Huskies finally managed to break through a compact Raiders side. Bloomsburg took advantage of the freedom made available from a free kick to space out the Shippensburg defense. With a tremendous delivery from Savage, Bull was able to make a clean run in front of the goal to put away the finish for her first collegiate goal.

The first-half goal forced the Raiders to come out of their primarily defensive shell and shift the focus to finding a goal. Goalkeeper Samantha Merklin (Effort, Pa./Pleasant Valley) made one routine save in the first half, as the final three chances of the first half for Shippensburg did not test the senior shot stopper.

The pace of the game slowed down to begin the second half, as the Huskies shifted the focus to preserving the lead. By inviting more pressure, the Raiders became more aggressive in their attacking movements. The first shot of the second half was a well-intended effort by Shippensburg's Ashley Hughes while sandwiched between Bloomsburg defenders. The next flurry from the Raiders' Ryleigh Cook initially bounced off one Husky before a rebound attempt hit another body in the box, nearly having its sights set on the bottom right corner. 

Merklin and the Bloomsburg backline remained composed under pressure and on the ball, setting up counter-attacking opportunities for the rotating Bloomsburg front three to keep Shippensburg off balance. Each stout defensive stand saw more time tick off the clock, allowing the Huskies to be the first team this season to defeat Shippensburg in conference play. 

Numbers of Note:
3 - Bull collegiate first continues a trend this year among the Huskies' depth. The freshman is the third player for Bloomsburg this season to find their first career goal, joining Kennedie Huber (Mountain Top, Pa./Crestwood) and Viktorya Luckenbach (Schuylkill Haven, Pa./Pine Grove Area) in that category. 

6-0 - One area on the night where the Huskies were disadvantaged to the Raiders was in the corner kick department. While Bloomsburg managed to have its fair share of chances from dead balls, Shippensburg found opportunities to create and take away corner kicks against the Huskies. Bloomsburg entered the match with a 27-11 edge in corner kicks, ranking 14th in the country in the category. The Raiders finished the night with six corners to the Huskies' zero.

5 - Merklin's steady hands minding the Bloomsburg net have come with some solid performances in her tenure with the Huskies. With five saves on Wednesday, the senior recorded her 13th career game with at least five saves since arriving at Bloomsburg.

On the Horizon:
The Bloomsburg women's soccer team returns to Steph Pettit Stadium on Saturday, September 20, at 4:00 p.m. for a PSAC matchup against a West Chester team receiving votes in the United Soccer Coaches Poll.