DOYLESTOWN, Pa. – Gianna Grassifulli scored four goals in the opening 22 minutes as Delaware Valley women's soccer rolled past PSU-Schuylkill, 7-0, on Friday afternoon.
Grassifulli opened the scoring in the sixth minute when Rena Kotsedakis won a battle near midfield and fed her for the goal. Just two minutes later, Grassifulli won a one-on-one battle with a defender and broke through for her second goal. The graduate student completed the hat trick in the 11th minute when Abby Foley sent a ball upfield that Grassifulli finished into the left side of the net. She added her fourth goal in the 22nd minute, assisted by Jarleny Aguilar-Acuna, to give the Aggies a 4-0 lead. Following the fourth goal, Penn State was forced to make a goalkeeper change due to an injury. Halimi entered and made an early save on Marissa Rogers. Jennelle Frye made a stop off a corner kick in the 35th minute while scrambling in front of the net. With 6:10 remaining in the first half, a Penn State bench player received a yellow card. Rogers later broke in on a breakaway but was called offside with three minutes left in the half.
Grassifulli continued to create chances early in the second half, having one shot saved before heading another off the crossbar. Aguilar-Acuna had a chance to score in the 57th minute but sent her shot over the net. Just over a minute later, at 58:07, the ball bounced off a defender and found Rogers, who finished for her first goal of the season to make it 5-0. Aguilar-Acuna and Rogers each had another opportunity to score but couldn't find the back of the net. In the 80th minute, Kotsedakis received a throw-in from Dekota Barthold and scored from long range into the bottom-left corner to extend the lead to 6-0. Before the final whistle, Kotsedakis struck again from long range, this time assisted by Alexa DelGiudice, to complete the 7-0 victory.
Following the win, the Aggies improve to 3-6 overall. DelVal opens MAC Freedom play on Tuesday, October 6, when it hosts DeSales at 4 p.m.
