Charleston, W. Va – In their first matchup of the 2024 season, the Golden Eagles would face the Barton Bulldogs at home on Saturday. The Bulldogs would also find themselves in their first game of the year after a 10-8 year. Similar to Charleston, their last matchup of 2023 would be a 16-7 loss to Mount Olive in the Conference Carolina's semifinal. 
 
The Basics
Location: Welch Athletic Complex
Score: UC 9, BC 16
Records: UC 0-1 (0-0 MEC), BC 1-0 (0-0 CC)
 
How it Happened
The Bulldogs would have an impressive debut in the Capital City, putting every single one of their shot attempts on frame which made it a busy afternoon for sophomore goalkeeper Megan Liston between the pipes. Barton would start the game fast with a Tamia Marshall unassisted goal at the 13:48 mark in the opening period for the quick lead over Charleston, but the Golden Eagles would answer right back with Madison Partridge's goal just under a minute later to knot the game at 1-1. The Bulldogs would put together two consecutive goals in less than two minutes played, but the Golden Eagles would keep themselves in the game with a pair of Partridge goals, giving the Sophomore an early hat trick. Darby Stolz would find her first goal of the year in the dying stages of the opening quarter, but Barton's two goals within the final five minutes would give them the 5-4 lead heading into the second quarter. 
 
The Bulldogs would win the turnover margin in the second quarter, allowing for them to spread the margin with six goals compared to Charleston's one. It would be a balanced attack for Barton as five different Bulldogs would score with Samantha Serio leading the way with her two goals. Barton goalkeeper Savannah Graves would also play a factor for her squad in the first half as she would put up seven saves on nearly 20 shots, allowing for the Bulldogs to give themselves a comfortable 11-5 lead heading into the halftime break. 
 
It would once again be all Barton following their trip to the locker room as the visitors would put up four more goals in the quarter, while the Golden Eagles would find just one from Nicolette Lospitalier at the 6:27 mark. Megan Liston would put up four saves for Charleston in the quarter, but Barton had put all eight of their shots on frame making it yet another action-packed period for the Ohio native. Partridge, who had been fighting incredibly hard to keep her team in the game, would have to watch from the sideline for the duration of the matchup after receiving her second yellow card midway through the quarter. 
 
Charleston would find goals in the fourth quarter from Lospitalier, Stolz, and Molly Bunker, but the Bulldogs had done enough damage to hold on for the 16-9 victory on the road. Partridge, despite an early ending to her day, would lead the way in goals with four. Freshman Hayden Slinkard contributed two assists for Charleston in her debut and newcomer Lospitalier led the way on defense with three caused turnovers. 
 
Up Next
The Golden Eagles will be back at home this upcoming Friday to face Lake Erie College at the Welch Athletic Complex on February 16^th at 12:00 PM.