NORFOLK, Va. -- The No. 22 Old Dominion field hockey team came out on the wrong end of a Big East defensive showdown on Friday, falling to No. 19 Liberty, 2-0, at the L.R. Hill Sports Complex.
Following an evenly-matched, scoreless first half, Liberty (9-3, 4-0 Big East) tallied two goals in the second half to prevail with the victory. Mallory Fortenbaugh, in the 44th minute, and Moniek Van Aarle, in the 59th minute, scored goals for the Lady Flames.
Old Dominion (7-4, 1-3 Big East) had its best scoring opportunity midway through the opening half, when the Monarchs had five consecutive penalty corners. However, the Liberty defense held strong, blocking a flurry of shots from Rebecca Birch.
In the waning minutes with ODU trailing by two, Robyn Murray also had an opportunity, but her high shot on a counter was parried by the Liberty keeper.
Overall, Liberty held a 12-7 advantage in shots and a 7-5 edge in corners.
Kealsie Robles played the full 70 minutes in the cage, making seven saves.
The Monarchs are now 3-2 against ranked opponents this season.
ODU has a quick turnaround, hosting No. 4 Duke on Sunday at noon.
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