BRIDGEPORT, West Virginia - In the first leg of an evening doubleheader from The Bridge Sports Complex, the Salem women's soccer team played host to the West Liberty Hilltoppers. Salem fell to the Hilltoppers on the road earlier in the season, so the Tigers were seeking some payback in the home rematch. Salem would not quite get that revenge, but showed some improved defensive play in a 2-0 loss. 

For the first half, the Tigers flexed those defensive muscles early on as they kept the West Liberty offensive attack bottled up for most of the first half. Salem created a few offensive chances of their own from Ana Luiza Ferrante and Marina Cher on the counterattack. The Tiger's defense held true through the first half, and the game entered the halftime break at 0-0.

After the break, Salem stayed true to their hardline defensive approach to the game. However, the Hilltoppers finally found some chinks in the armor of the Salem backline, and added 2 goals in the middle part of the half. That would be all they needed to hold onto the 2-0 victory. 

On the scoresheet, it was Marina Cher and Ana Luiza Ferrante who led the team offensively. Defensively, Jerica Mayberry had a particularly strong performance, and goalkeeper Sarah Cabrera logged 16 saves on the day. 

Despite the tough result today, Salem will be back for one more contest at The Bridge this season. They will celebrate Senior Day on Sunday, October 29th at 1 PM when they take on the Fairmont State Falcons.