After making the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference tournament for the first time in its history in 2011, the women’s soccer team has high hopes for 2012.

The Eagles haven’t exactly had the start they envisioned, losing their first three games by a combined score of 5-1.

They lost games on the road to Mercyhurst (1-0), Gannon (1-0) and Davis and Elkins (3-1). Freshman forward/midfielder Allison Richards scored Ashland’s only goal in those three matches.

Mercyhurst (1-0-0)

The Eagles were held scoreless in their first match Aug. 30, but not for lack of effort.

Ashland outshot the Lakers 21-6, but only six of those shots were on goal.

The ‘Hurst’s Sarah Slezak came off the bench and scored the match’s only goal in the 33rd minute on her first and only shot.

Junior midfielder Melissa Hill led the Eagles with four shots, two of which were on frame.

The Eagles pressed hard for an equalizer in the second half, firing 13 shots and earning six corner kicks to Mercyhurst’s two shots and zero corners.

Mercyhurst goalkeeper Ellie McDougall held her line, making six saves to keep the clean sheet.

Gannon (2-0-0)

The day after the Mercyhurst match, Ashland headed to the Gannon Classic, where the Eagles fell to the hosts 1-0 in overtime.

Gannon dominated the run of play from start to finish, finishing with a 19-9 edge in shots and a 12-4 advantage in shots on goal.

Junior goalkeeper Rebecca Plescia made 10 saves, but was not able to step in front of Jordan Rickan’s shot in the 98th minute.

Richards led the Eagles with four shots, and freshman defender Bethany Lang had two shots on goal.

In seven minutes of overtime, Gannon shot five times and Ashland had zero shots.

Davis and Elkins (4-0-0)

After a disappointing opening weekend, the Eagles traveled to Elkins, West Va. to take on Davis and Elkins College.

Ashland fell behind early, but crawled back to within a goal in the second half before the Senators’ Taylor Morton slammed the door shut with her third goal in the final minute of a 3-1 victory.

Morton found the breakthrough in the 24th minute and extended the lead in the 62nd minute.

Six minutes later, Richards scored the Eagles’ first goal of the year off of an assist from Hill to make it 2-1 and give the team new life.

Despite giving up three goals, Plescia got in the way of six of the Senators shots. Morton—who has scored five goals in four matches for Davis and Elkins—was just too much for her defense to handle.

Both teams fired 13 shots in a back-and-forth match, with the Senators putting nine shots on goal to the Eagles’ eight.

Ashland earned four corner kicks and Davis and Elkins had three.

Senior defender Rachel Luebke received a yellow card in the 80th minute.

The Eagles hosted Charleston (West Va.) yesterday in a match that happened after press time. They head back on the road tomorrow for a four-match stretch to open GLIAC play, starting with a rematch against Grand Valley State from last year’s conference title game.

Ashland then heads to Ferris State Sunday before going to Findlay and Tiffin next weekend.