HAMPTON, Va. – Despite the second two-goal effort from Palisa Chipendo in the past three games, the Lady Railsplitters' (7-9) comeback bid came up short in a 3-2 loss at Hampton (3-8-1) early Tuesday afternoon at the HU Soccer Complex.
 
The Pirates dominated early and raced out to a 2-0 lead while outshooting Lincoln Memorial 9-1 through the first 35 minutes of action. However, the Lady Railsplitters settled in for the final 65 minutes and outshot Division I Hampton 13-3 to nearly rally back for the victory.
 
Sydney Jackson gave the Pirates a 1-0 lead in the 18th minute when she scored off an assist from Michelle Zilberman, who got in on the action again in the 36th minute with a goal of her own to extend Hampton's lead to 2-0.
 
It looked as if that score would hold through the end of the first half until Chipendo finished off a long cross from Isa Jara in the 44th minute to cut the Pirates' lead to 2-1 at the break.
 
Hampton reestablished a two-goal lead less than nine minutes into the second half on Jackson's second goal of the day, but Lincoln Memorial pulled back within one in the 61st minute courtesy of Chipendo's successful penalty kick.
 
The Lady Railsplitters had a chance to draw the match back level as Chipendo, looking for a hat trick, was pegged to attempt another penalty kick in the 78th minute. However, the senior's attempt was saved by Hampton keeper Haley Nelson to preserve the Pirates' lead.
 
Lincoln Memorial landed just one more shot on goal after that and Nelson also stopped Melissa Carpenter's 79th-minute attempt to clinch the victory.
 
Brooke Taylor conceded all three Hampton goals and recorded three saves before being replaced by Leanna Hendrix in the 59th minute. In her first appearance of the season, Hendrix made one save and didn't allow a goal over 31 minutes of work.
 
Quick Hits
 
- Carpenter led the Railsplitters with five shots, while Chipendo had four shots with three landing on goal. Lea Scharf also recorded multiple shot attempts with two.
 
- The loss dropped Lincoln Memorial to 2-6 on the road this season. It also marked the team's fifth consecutive road loss.
 
- With her two goals, Chipendo took over the team lead in the department by pushing her total to five. Chipendo, who also produced two goals in last week's double-overtime win over Mars Hill, only tallied one goal all of last season.
 
Up Next
 
The Lady Railsplitters close out the regular season with an absolute must-win South Atlantic Conference showdown against the Catawba Indians on Saturday at the LMU Soccer Complex. With a win, Lincoln Memorial would clinch a bid for the SAC tournament. After a ceremony recognizing the team's senior class, first touch is set for 1 p.m. Live stats and video links will be available at www.lmurailsplitters.com.