Liberty Lady Flames Secure 1-0 Victory Over JMU with Engle's Late Goal

LYNCHBURG, Va. – Liberty didn’t blink. Short-handed at the back, pushed around for long stretches, and staring at a third straight draw with James Madison, the Lady Flames found a late answer.

Her name was Halle Engle.

With the clock ticking into the 82nd minute and tension hanging over Osborne Stadium, Engle slipped behind the JMU back line, chased by shadows and doubt. Margaret Garner, trailing the play, spotted the lane and threaded the pass. Engle took off, beat the Dukes’ charging goalkeeper to the ball, and tucked home the only goal of the night in a 1-0 Liberty win.

The flag stayed down. The stadium erupted. JMU protested.

The Dukes swarmed the referee, arms raised, pleading for an offside call. The play went to video review, the crowd holding its breath as the replay rolled. After a brief check, the goal stood. Liberty led. The momentum, and the match, belonged to the Lady Flames.

Leja slams the door

The story, though, didn’t belong only to the forward line. In goal, Ainsley Leja turned in one of the standout performances of her season.

With starting center back Lauren Littleton sidelined and freshman Dani Gubbels making the first start of her career in the heart of defense, Liberty knew JMU would test its reshuffled back line. The Dukes obliged, outshooting Liberty 7-5 in the first half and matching the Lady Flames with three shots on target before the break.

Leja answered everything. She finished with a season-high-tying six saves, locking down her third full 90-minute shutout of the year and the 24th of her career. Her season numbers now sit at a 0.80 goals-against average and a .806 save percentage, underpinning a Liberty side that has quietly built its identity around defensive steel.

JMU, physical and persistent, kept coming. Yet once Engle’s strike hit the net, the Dukes could muster only a single shot in the final eight minutes as Liberty calmly strangled the clock and closed out its fifth shutout of the season.

Engle delivers again

Engle’s winner carried extra weight. It was her 11th career game-winning goal and her third this season, a reminder of how often she has been the difference in tight contests.

She now leads the team with three goals on the year, nudging ahead in a balanced attack where Garner and Avenly Monteith both sit on matching totals of two goals and two assists. On Thursday, though, the spotlight belonged squarely to Engle and Garner, the forward duo combining for the decisive moment Liberty had been chasing all night.

It broke a familiar pattern between these programs. The previous two meetings ended in draws, and three of the last four clashes had gone beyond regulation, including Liberty’s overtime win in 2019. For 80 minutes, this one looked destined for the same script.

Engle tore it up in eight seconds.

Home fortress, familiar foe

With the victory, Liberty moves to 6-2-1 on the season and a perfect 4-0 at home. The Lady Flames also chip away at JMU’s historical edge, improving their all-time record against the Dukes to 4-8-2 and posting a 3-2-2 mark over the last seven meetings.

Five Liberty players went the full 90 minutes on a night that demanded concentration and composure, especially from a back line missing its anchor. Gubbels’ first career start came under real pressure, yet the reshaped unit held, protected by Leja’s sure hands and sharp positioning.

Liberty has now ground out two 1-0 wins this season, adding JMU to a list that already includes VCU. Each of those narrow margins has reinforced the same message: this team knows how to suffer, stay organized, and then strike when the chance finally appears.

Next test: Old Dominion and a celebration

The non-conference slate closes on Sunday afternoon when Old Dominion visits Osborne Stadium. Liberty, now 6-2-1, will face an ODU side sitting at 2-4, but the day will carry significance beyond the scoreboard.

Before kickoff, the Lady Flames will honor 11 members of their 2026 Senior Class in a pre-game ceremony, a nod to the core that has helped build this home fortress and shaped the standard now on display.

Liberty’s perfect home record is intact. The defense keeps stacking clean sheets. Engle keeps deciding games.

Old Dominion arrives next. The question is simple: who stops this run in Lynchburg?