Grand Rapids, Mich. – In the first semifinal of the 2016 NWLL National Championship, the Bees of SCAD took on the Panthers of Davenport. The Panthers raced out to an early 6-0 lead and after a Lady Bees goal, picked up the final two goals of the half to take an 8-1 lead. In the second half the Bees came out on fire, collecting five straight goals to cut the deficit to two. After each team traded goals, the Lady Bees would not be able to get any closer. The Lady Panthers took the victory 11-9.
Jessica Lemcke got the Panthers on the board with a pair of goals in the first nine minutes. Brooke Knoll extended the Panthers lead to three after she finished off a pass from Hanna Bush. Bush was credited with an assist on the first three Panthers goals.
Amber Livingston quickly extended the Panthers lead to five with back-to-back goals. Brianna Longnecker capped off the Panthers run with an unassisted goal. Joanna Ehatt collected the first goal of the game for the Bees with 9:36 left in the first half.
To end the half Knoll collected her second goal of the game, while Lemcke added her third to give the Panthers an 8-1 lead at the break. Davenport held a 16-11 advantage in shots in the first half and a 16-10 advantage in groundballs.
The Bees started the second half with five straight goals. Taylor Vaccaro collected a pair of goals to start the run. Danni Cox collected an assist on both goals. Sophie Cutts picked up her first goal of the game with 19:00 left in the game, after a pass from Torii Clark. Vacarro then netted her third goal of the game on a free position shot.
Emma Devereaux capped off the Bees run with 17:46 left. Just over two minutes later Amber Livingston tallied her third goal of the game to extend the lead back to three. Vaccaro came right back with a goal to cut the deficit back to two.
Less than five minutes later, Lemcke found the back of the net to put the Panthers back up by three. Over the final eight minutes of play, the Bees collected two of the final three goals, but it would be not enough. The Panthers went on to take the victory 11-9.
Lemcke led the Panthers with five goals on six shots and a groundball. Livingston added three goals and two draw controls. Knoll chipped in two goals, while Longnecker added one. Alex Yates picked up the win in net, after finishing with nine saves.
Vacarro led the Bees with five goals on 13 shots and three groundballs. Ehatt collected a pair of goals, while Devereuax and Cutts each finished with one. The Bees finished with 13 draw controls.
With the victory the Panthers move on to the championship game. They will play #3 Lawrence Tech at 5:00 pm (EST) Saturday.
*Courtesy of Matt Ankenbrandt, NWLL.net
