MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (Sept. 5, 2024) – In a match that saw six cards and 12 total fouls, the West Virginia University women’s soccer team fought to a gritty, 2-0 win over James Madison at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium on Thursday night.
The match was highlighted by a pair of goals from junior forward Ajanae Respass. The brace marked the second for WVU (3-2) this season, after classmate Taylor White notched a pair of scores against Radford on Aug. 18. While it was Respass’ first brace as a Mountaineer, it was the second of her college career after she notched her first two-goal performance as a freshman at Oregon in 2022. West Virginia has now featured a two-goal scorer 130 times in program history.
Aside from Respass’ pair of goals, a second-half red card for starting goalkeeper Bailey Herfurth was the story of the match. Herfurth received the card after accidentally playing a ball outside the box in the 50th minute and was sent off. She was replaced in goal by redshirt sophomore keeper Mackenzie Smith, and WVU was forced to finish out the match with 10 players. From there, the West Virginia defense stepped up to the call and played a tough match to save the eventual shutout.
Respass got West Virginia on the board in the 19th minute, receiving a long ball from the far corner from sophomore defender Olivia Shertzer. Respass got a toe on it and bounced past the goal line for the Mountaineer score. From there, WVU took a 1-0 lead into the locker room, but doubled the lead quickly into the second half with Respass’ second score coming just two minutes into the frame. White took control of the ball deep into JMU’s 18-yard box and pitched it to Respass, who brought the Dukes’ keeper off her line to score on the open net.
In the final box score, West Virginia outshot James Madison, 13-6, including 6-1 in shots on goal. The Mountaineers earned six corner kicks compared to two for the Dukes. JMU keeper Sofia DeCerb collected four saves, while Smith notched WVU’s lone save in the match after coming into the game after Herfurth’s red card. Respass earned her second game winner of the year, while the WVU defense posted its fourth clean sheet.
West Virginia now looks ahead to its final nonconference match of the season, welcoming Liberty to Morgantown on Sunday, Sept. 8, to wrap up a three-game homestand. The nonconference finale is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET, at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium. It’s WVU’s Camper Reunion Day, and the Mountaineers will host a post-match clinic for kids 12 and under following the match.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUWomensSoccer on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
The match was highlighted by a pair of goals from junior forward Ajanae Respass. The brace marked the second for WVU (3-2) this season, after classmate Taylor White notched a pair of scores against Radford on Aug. 18. While it was Respass’ first brace as a Mountaineer, it was the second of her college career after she notched her first two-goal performance as a freshman at Oregon in 2022. West Virginia has now featured a two-goal scorer 130 times in program history.
Aside from Respass’ pair of goals, a second-half red card for starting goalkeeper Bailey Herfurth was the story of the match. Herfurth received the card after accidentally playing a ball outside the box in the 50th minute and was sent off. She was replaced in goal by redshirt sophomore keeper Mackenzie Smith, and WVU was forced to finish out the match with 10 players. From there, the West Virginia defense stepped up to the call and played a tough match to save the eventual shutout.
Respass got West Virginia on the board in the 19th minute, receiving a long ball from the far corner from sophomore defender Olivia Shertzer. Respass got a toe on it and bounced past the goal line for the Mountaineer score. From there, WVU took a 1-0 lead into the locker room, but doubled the lead quickly into the second half with Respass’ second score coming just two minutes into the frame. White took control of the ball deep into JMU’s 18-yard box and pitched it to Respass, who brought the Dukes’ keeper off her line to score on the open net.
In the final box score, West Virginia outshot James Madison, 13-6, including 6-1 in shots on goal. The Mountaineers earned six corner kicks compared to two for the Dukes. JMU keeper Sofia DeCerb collected four saves, while Smith notched WVU’s lone save in the match after coming into the game after Herfurth’s red card. Respass earned her second game winner of the year, while the WVU defense posted its fourth clean sheet.
West Virginia now looks ahead to its final nonconference match of the season, welcoming Liberty to Morgantown on Sunday, Sept. 8, to wrap up a three-game homestand. The nonconference finale is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET, at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium. It’s WVU’s Camper Reunion Day, and the Mountaineers will host a post-match clinic for kids 12 and under following the match.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUWomensSoccer on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
