Women’s First Team Earns 1-0 Victory Behind Clinical First-Half Performance

By Zander Plizga

Cheswick, PA — The Women’s First Team continued their good form and moved to 3-3-0 on the season after picking up a much-deserved win over Cleveland SC late Tuesday evening.  Steel City dominated the run of play throughout the first half. Steel City found the back of the net in the 23rd minute off a well-worked transition. They continued the momentum through the rest of the match, but were unable to put another chance away despite the various chances.

Peyton O’Malley ( Bowling Green ’28) returned to goal after her stint at the TST in Cary, North Carolina. It was a calm night for O’Malley; she didn’t face too many shots thanks to another solid defensive performance from the Steel City backline.

Photo Cred: Jared

Stager Stays Scoring

The lone goal of the match came in the 23rd minute off a well-worked transition from Steel City. After winning the ball back at midfield, they found a great ball in behind that split the backline and rolled into the on-running Maya Matesa (Duquesne ’26). Matesa drew in the centerback before cutting a ball back across the six, to find Abigail Stager (Maryland ’28). Stager received the ball on a half turn to lose the defender and smashed the ball into the bottom corner as the goalie was scrambling.

Up Next

Steel City FC returns to action on Saturday, June 13, when they take on Flower City at Founders Field. Kickoff is set to start at 6 p.m., and the full game broadcast will be available on SportsEngine.