The Emory University women's soccer team was firing on all cylinders again Tuesday night, dominating crosstown foe Oglethorpe University, 7-0, for the team's sixth consecutive win.
For the second time in three games an Eagle recorded a hat trick, this time by senior Aubrey Blanchard, while junior Grace Reyer had her first career two-goal performance as the duo led Emory to its highest goal total of the season. Two different Eagles finished with two assists in the high-flying attack, notably from the Division III assists per game leader, senior Kylie Hall, who was at it again against the Stormy Petrels.
Hall ran her assist streak to six games on Tuesday with another multi-assist performance, her fourth game with two or more assists during the stretch. She now has 12 on the season through nine games, tying the Emory women's soccer program record set by Talia Dweck in 2009 for most assists in a single season.
The Eagles set the tone within the first minute of play as Hall found Blanchard inside the six for a beautiful back-heel flick that found the far post 44 seconds after the opening kickoff. From there the onslaught was on as the Eagles went on to outshoot Oglethorpe 45-0 and had 26 shots on goal throughout the 90 minutes of play.
Blanchard found the scoring column for a second time at the 19 minute mark with a left-footed strike from 22 yards out that went in just under the crossbar. Reyer notched the first of her two to round out the scoring in the first half, making it a 3-0 game with 18:29 left to go before the break. Freshman Samantha Lim sent a pass from the endline back to the center of the box, off the foot of graduate student Mara Rodriguez, to Reyer who finished from seven yards out.
Blanchard and Reyer continued the scoring barrage within the first ten minutes of the second half with Blanchard registering the hat trick at the 48:31 mark. Hall's corner kick found an unguarded Blanchard on the far side of the box who in turn curled a shot attempt around the near post for her team leading eighth goal of the year. Reyer pushed Emory's lead to 5-0 six minutes later, once again finishing from seven yards out on another feed from Rodriguez.
Graduate student Haley Barge increased the Eagles lead to six with 13:33 remaining, recording her first goal in Emory blue and gold thanks to a great through ball by junior Emma Cornejo that followed a touch pass from senior Kaitlyn Price. An own goal by Oglethorpe 64 seconds later put the final touches on the scoring as Lim sent a cross in that was headed backwards off a defender and into the net.
The Eagles return to conference play this weekend as they take their six-game winning streak into Chicago, IL to face the Maroons of University of Chicago on Saturday, October 8 at 2:30 PM EST.