MARS HILL, N.C. – The Lincoln Memorial University women's soccer team pulled off a dramatic second half comeback Wednesday evening against the Lions of Mars Hill, winning 2-1 on the road, as head coach Tasha Flynn began her Lady Railsplitter career with three points.
 
LMU and Mars Hill went to the break nil-nil, and the Lions came out of halftime with a quick opener off a free kick. The Lady Railsplitters pressure mounted as the game continued, resulting in seniors Rachel Taylor and Jessica Cravero finding the back of the net in the space of minutes, both set up by freshman Kyara Vanheuverswijn.
 
"I am beyond proud of the fight the team showed tonight to battle back from a goal down," head coach Tasha Flynn said.
 
The Lady Railsplitters have matched the pace of Queens, Catawba, and Lenoir-Rhyne for perfect starts to the South Atlantic Conference 2021 fall campaign. LMU and Queens sit atop the standings at 4-0 with 12 points, followed closely behind by Catawba and Lenoir-Rhyne, who are 3-0 with nine points. LMU and Catawba are the only two sides in the conference unbeaten in all competitions this season.
 
LMU fought back to victory Wednesday evening to maintain three impressive streaks. The Blue & Grey are unbeaten in all competitions through seven matches this season, with a 17-regular season game unbeaten streak, dating back to the fall of 2019. The Lady Railsplitters are also undefeated in eight-consecutive away contests, also dating back to the fall of 2019.
 
The opening period of play Wednesday evening saw LMU and Mars Hill head to the break level. Freshman keeper Bente Latenstein came up clutch in the game's first ten minutes, denying Mars Hill a simple opener. Palencia and Taylor had the best chances of the first half, but the Mars Hill back line held tight through 45 minutes of action. The Lions keeper stayed strong at the end of the half during a one-on-one with the prolific scorer in Taylor, denying LMU of the lead.
 
Mars Hill took advantage of the Lady Railsplitters out of the break with a foul in a dangerous position just outside the box. The Lions converted from the set-piece, as the Lady Railsplitters fell behind for just the second time in seven matches this season.  
 
LMU fought back in the 66th minute to pull themselves level on the night. 30-yards out from goal, Graciela Palencia and Kyara Vanheuverswijn combined for an excellent give-go sequence, as Vanheuverswijn swung a dangerous cross in seconds later, finding SAC star Rachel Taylor for the matches' equalizing effort. Taylor calmy tucked a one-time volley past the Mars Hill keeper for her eighth finish of the season.
 
Just minutes later, the Lady Railsplitters claimed their first lead of the evening in the 73rd. Vanheuverswijn darted down the wing and was clear on the Lion's goal, as the Dutch native hit the post. Senior Jessica Cravero was there for the tap-in to clean up the play. The Italian scored her sixth goal of the season into the empty Mars Hill net, which proved to be the decisive effort on the evening. LMU's defense held strong in the game's final 15 minutes, wrapping up a key away victory to maintain their perfect four-for-four start to the season.
 
Up Next
 
The Lady Railsplitters remain on the road this Saturday, traveling to unbeaten Lenoir-Rhyne. Kickoff is scheduled for 5 p.m. EST.

How to Follow
 
Stay tuned to LMURailsplitters.com, as well as LMU's social media platforms - @LMURailsplitter on Twitter, @LMURailsplitters on Facebook and @lmurailsplitters on Instagram, for complete coverage of Lady Railsplitter soccer across the 2021 season.