Washington, D.C. - The Le Moyne College women's soccer team were defeated in its matchup against Howard University on Thursday.

Howard entered today's contest with a record of 1-4-4 (0-1 NEC) following a 3-0 loss to Stonehill. Le Moyne entered the match with a record of 1-9 (0-1 NEC) following a 3-1 loss to Mercyhurst.

The Dolphins would make just one change to their starting lineup against Mercyhurst, which saw sophomore defender Maria Komala (Warsaw, Poland/Notre Dame College) make her debut in the starting XI.

The two programs went back and forth for the first five minutes of action, as neither team were able to find a way through the opposing defense. Howard registered the first shot of the match in the 6^th minute of play off a corner kick, met by the head of Howard's Savannah Hirch, that sailed over the crossbar of the Dolphin net. On the ensuing possession, junior midfielder Lindsey LeBlanc (Westminister, Mass./St. Bernard's) had a shot on the Bison goal, that was comfortably saved by Trinity Knox.

The teams continued to try to find a way through but were unsuccessful. Senior defender Katelyn Courcy (Syracuse, N.Y./Christian Brothers Academy) made her eighth appearance of the season for the Dolphins in the 16^th minute of the game, looking to provide a spark for the 'Phins. Freshman goalkeeper Mikayla McPheron (Rome, N.Y./Rome Free Academy) made her first save of the game in the 17^th minute.

Freshman defender Mallory Pietrzak (Rochester, N.Y./Penfield) entered the game in the 30^th minute, as the teams continued to go back and forth. Shortly after, freshman Nicole Calle (Providence, R.I./Cumberland) registered the second shot of the game for Le Moyne that went over the top right of the Bison net. Fifth year midfielder Jenicah Brown (Cortland, N.Y./Cortland/Cazenovia) and redshirt freshman Logan Cookinham (Poland, N.Y./Poland) came into the match in the 36^th minute of action. Neither team were able to gain an advantage on the other as the two teams entered halftime knotted at 0-0.

Howard started the 2^nd half quickly, registering a shot within the first 90 seconds of play resulting in a goal kick for Le Moyne. McPheron added two saves to her catalog just a few minutes later to keep the score even. Freshman forward Alivia Day (Rochester, N.Y./Rush-Henrietta) made her first appearance of the game in the 54^th minute to add support in the Dolphin attack.

The Bison scored their first goal of the game in the 57th minute of play. Freshman forward Gabriella Garcia-Terrell went on a solo run down the left wing, firing off a shot that was blocked by junior defender Jasmina Barhoumi (Worms, Germany/Nelly-Sachs-IGS/D'Youville). The rebound fell to the feet of Garcia-Terrell, who fired a shot into the bottom left corner of the Dolphin net to give Howard a 1-0 lead.

Howard added two more shots before the Dolphins made two changes, bringing Wilson and Brown back into the game. In the 62^nd minute, McPheron made her fourth save of the game off a shot from Howard's Kyra Bolden.

Le Moyne found it difficult to add a shot on target until the 77^th minute when Barhoumi hit a free kick that was saved at the near post by Knox. Junior forward Courtney Felton (Rochester, N.Y./Penfield/Roberts Wesleyan) had the final opportunity of the game for the 'Phins in the 87^th minute, receiving a pass from senior midfielder Danielle Casey (Clifton Park, N.Y./Shenendehowa), taking a touch and shooting with her left foot, resulting in a comfortable save for Knox.

The Bison came away with the result as they defeated the Dolphins 1-0 in the nations capital. McPheron ended the game with a total of eight saves, tying her season-high eight saves recorded against Maine on August 15th.

Le Moyne hosts its third conference match of the season on Sunday following the men's game against FDU, as the LIU sharks visit Ted Grant Field for the first time. Action is scheduled to begin at 4:00 P.M.