In head coach Jane Brennan’s first season, the Salisbury field hockey team took steps forward. Finishing above .500 in the Colonial League and qualifying for the district tournament last fall was a solid start.

But the Falcons’ most impressive accomplishment under Brennan may have came in this season’s opener.

Salisbury, now 2-0 in the early going this fall, opened up with a 5-4 overtime victory over last year’s District 11 Class A champion Moravian Academy last week. The Falcons followed that up with a 2-1 victory over Freedom on Saturday morning at Salisbury High School.

“I was extremely proud of the girls since they just played the day before and that went into overtime,” Brennan said. “However, I was most proud that we only gave up one goal as opposed to the four the day before.

“Anytime you can beat a team with the championship caliber like Moravian Academy, it is a great accomplishment for our program. Despite winning, that game showed us things that we need to improve on moving forward. I am glad we were able to take some of those learning lessons and apply them against Freedom.”

Deadlocked in a scoreless game at halftime against Freedom, two of the Falcons’ captains came through when Salisbury needed it most. Madison Jewell set up Kaitlin Keller on a penalty corner that put the Falcons in front, 1-0.

Freedom tied the game with a goal from Emma Telatovich, but Salisbury had an answer. Keller ripped another one into the cage on a penalty stroke for the game-deciding goal.

“We have run a lot of drills with the hope that it would improve our scoring output,” Brennan said. “Kaitlyn Keller has put time in throughout the offseason, and her leadership skills on and off the field have manifested itself early this season.”

Riley Stauffer, who scored three goals against Moravian Academy, has been a steady scoring threat for Brennan so far this fall.

“Riley Stauffer had a fantastic freshman campaign, and fortunately for us she has built on that early success and not only continued it, but has improved early this season,” Brennan said. “Neither Kaitlyn’s nor Riley’s successes would be possible without the tenacious and intelligent play of senior midfielder Madison Jewell.”

Jewell has been a superb facilitator thus far with three assists through two games. Two of those came in the Moravian win where Bella Martinez scored the game-winner in overtime.

“The entire team continues to work hard to achieve success for the program each and every day,” Brennan said. “The girls take one game at a time, even one practice at a time, and have learned not to be overly confident. They celebrate their success, but know there are competitors right around the corner that can deflate them quickly.”

Salisbury travels to Saucon Valley to take on the Panthers on Wednesday and to Southern Lehigh on Friday before hosting Palmerton Saturday evening.