GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Panthers had an always-important conference game against an opponent that is struggling this year. Davenport welcomes the Saints of Maryville to the DU Turf Field for a GLIAC battle. The Saints came into the game still looking for their first conference win of the season, holding a 0-5 GLIAC record. The Panthers were coming off a double-digit win over Ashland in GLIAC action and continued that momentum against Maryville today. The defense was solid for Davenport, as they limited Maryville to only four shots during the entire game.
 
The Basics
Final Score: Davenport University-16 | Maryville-2
Location: Grand Rapids, Mich.
Record: DU (6-4, 3-2) | MU (1-9, 0-6)

 
Goals Per Period
First period: DU-11 | MU-0
Second period: DU-5 | MU-2

How It Happened
The Panthers scored the initial goal of the game and was in the driver's seat throughout the entire game. Taylor Ries got the scoring started with an unassisted goal in the third minute of play. Davenport continued to roll off 11 unanswered goals in the first half, with the lack of goals from Maryville stemming from the stifling Davenport defense. The lack of scoring was due to the Panthers winning 11 of the 12 draw controls and only turning the ball over five times. The fantastic five for Davenport, Brenna Knoll, Reilly Noble, Ryann Deuel, Aaliyah Miller and Ries, were involved in all 11 of the goals scored in the half. The Panthers didn't allow one shot from Maryville in the half, helping DU hold a 11-0 lead.
 
Davenport had some great individual efforts in the second half. The Panthers scored four unassisted goals in the half, one from Mackenzie Kelbert, Miller, Ries, and Noble. The second half went by a lot quicker than the first, mainly due to the running clock throughout the 30-minute half. Alex Yates played the second half in net, replacing Makenna Pitchford, and saw more action than her fellow teammate. Yates faced three shots and saved one of them. The Saints had little chance to make a legitimate comeback in the second half, due to the dominance by Davenport shown in the opening 30 minutes of play.

Inside The Box
Ries (3 G, 5 A, 2 GB, CT)
Miller (5 G, 7 GB, CT, 1-1 FPS)
Noble (3 G, 2 A, GB, CT, 1-1 FPS)
Knoll (2 G, A, GB, CT, 7 DC, 0-1 FPS)
Deuel (2 G, GB, 2 DC, 0-1 FPS)
Kelbert (G, 2 GB)
Brianna Longnecker (2 GB, 3 CT)
Mackenzie Maschke (GB, 2 CT)
Pitchford (30:00 minutes, 0 GA, 0 saves, Win)
Yates (30:00 minutes, 2 GA, 1 save)
 
Coaches Corner
"I challenged the girls to give full effort today and I believe we achieved that. We know that anyone can beat anyone in NCAA Division 2, so we can't look past any opponent. The ladies executed the game plan perfectly and I was happy to see how well they played from start to finish" – Head Coach Rob Harris

Up Next
Davenport takes one day off before they host McKendree University on Sunday. The game will start at 12:00 p.m. on the DU Turf Field

Story by: Devin Steiner
 
Picture credit: Tom Puskar