The Rams (5-11, 3-2 MEC) lost to the UVa-Wise Cavaliers (12-4, 4-1 MEC) on the road Sunday afternoon. It was the final game of the season for the Rams.
In the beginning of the game, things were looking good for Shepherd as they jumped out to a 2-0 lead just five minutes into the contest. Senior midfielder Hayley Price and freshman attacker Lillian Funke helped to get the Rams off to a good start.
The lead didn’t last for long, as the Cavaliers scored two goals in about a minute of action. The game was fast paced as Shepherd again regained the lead with a three-goal outburst to bring the score to 5-2 at the 20-minute mark of the first half.
By the 12-minute mark of the first half the Cavaliers had made another cut into the lead as goals from Sydney Steinburg and Hannah Marshall brought the total to four.
Another goal from Hayley Price increased the Rams’ lead to 6-4 with 11 minutes to go in the first half. That is where the tide of the game began to shift, as UVa-Wise would not go away.
Within the final 10 minutes of the first half the Cavaliers stormed back to take a 7-6 lead. The last two goals for the Rams were scored by Funke and junior midfielder Courtney Matthews. The goals came just under five minutes into the second half, and from that point on it was all UVa-Wise.
Cavaliers attacker Catherine Dina put them up for good with 23 minutes to go in the game. Kristin Gobbi and Annie Hanson put away goals 10 and 11 to seal the win.
The match was tightly contested throughout, as shown by stats such as shots on goal. The Rams had nine total shots on goal, whereas the Cavaliers had 10 shots on goal. UVa-Wise had a total of 29 shots compared to 23 from the Rams.
The Lady Rams can now look forward to the 2018 season and also reflect on a disappointing 5-11 campaign.
Vaughn Brewer is a Sports reporter for the The Picket. He can be reached at
Vbrewe01@rams.shepherd.edu