FRIDAY'S SCORES
Morehead State 5, Francis Marion 3
Bowling Green 3,
@Eastern Illinois 2
@Murray State 1, Louisiana Tech 0
@FAU 2,
Southeast Missouri 0
Belmont 0, @Evansville 0
Saint Louis 2,
@SIUE 1
@Austin Peay 7, Western Illinois 1
@Memphis 1,
UT Martin 0
MOREHEAD STATE 5, FRANCIS MARION 3
CHARLESTON, S.C. - Morehead State collected it's first road win of the season with a victory over Francis Marion (S.C.), 5-3, in the Nike Challenge 2 at CSU Soccer Field.
An exciting stretch led by freshman forward Abby Timm stole the show for the Eagles as they scored five unanswered goals.
Freshman forward Samantha Damante got the scoring started in the 29th minute, as she took a stray ball from the right side of the box, dribbled to the top, and scored from 15 yards out to tie the contest at one. Damante's goal was the first of her collegiate career.
A little over two minutes later, Timm scored off of an assist from senior midfielder Kristi Gomez, giving the Eagles a 2-1 lead. Timm continued her strong play by swiping her second goal of the match in the 39th minute. She broke away off of a lead pass from junior forward Lauren Duffy and beat the goalkeeper one-on-one.
MSU would end the first half with one more goal, this one coming off of a penalty kick from senior midfielder Macy Kootz in the 43rd minute. The Eagles outshot the Patriots 18-4 and took a 4-1 lead into the half.
The Eagles jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the second half as senior defender Kesley Gomez collected her first goal of the season off of an assist from junior forward Angela Black.
"Creating chances, we had an A today, when we took care of the ball we were a good team," said Head Coach Warren Lipka.
Francis Marion junior forward Anthony Kelly was the bright spot for the Patriots, as she recorded three goals on the afternoon. She scored on an unassisted goal to start the game, added a second goal on a breakaway in the 65th minute, and her third came off of a penalty kick in the 74th minute.
The Eagles continue their four-game road stretch on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET, as they take on hosting Charleston Southern.
BOWLING GREEN 3, EASTERN ILLINOIS 2
CHARLESTON, Ill. - Eastern Illinois and Bowling Green played the first 45 minutes of their Friday afternoon match in a drizzle turned down pour which the visiting Falcons took advantage off to take a 3-1 lead. The weather cleared in the second half with BGSU holding off EIU, 3-2.
EIU fell to 1-5-1 on the season and will play next Friday evening at Kansas City. Bowling Green improved to 4-2 on the year.
The Falcons took some early momentum as they scored a pair of goals within 90 seconds of each other in the first half. Madison Schupbach had the first BGSU goal in the 15th minute as her shot from just outside the goal box beat EIU goalkeeper Madison Lyon high to the net. The goal was assisted by Jessica Creech and Haley Parkinson.
The next BGSU goal came in the 16th minute as Mikaela Couch scored to the low corner on an assist by Creech.
EIU cut the margin in half as Kathleen MacKinnon scored from the front of the goal box in the 23rd minute. MacKinnon settled the ball and scored on an assist sent in by Molly Hawkins.
Hawkins and MacKinnon would team up for the Panthers final goal in the 59th minute as MacKinnon had a blast saved initially by BGSU goalkeeper Lauren Cadel. Hawkins found the loose ball and first hit a shot off the post and followed that for her fifth goal of the season.
That goal brought EIU within one as Bowling Green’s goal in the final 35 seconds of the opening half held up. The game winner was scored by Skylar Fleak on an assist by Schupbach. Fleak hit a low left foot shot past the keeper for the third BGSU goal.
EIU had two additional chances in the second half on set pieces but a late header by Brooke Munroe went wide of the net.
Lyon finished with nine saves for EIU. Cadel posted four saves for BGSU.
MURRAY STATE 1, LOUISIANA TECH
MURRAY, Ky. - Murray State women's soccer won their home opener Friday, defeating Louisiana Tech in an overtime thriller 1-0 at Cutchin Field.
In the 93rd minute, Taylor Richerson scored her second game winning goal of the season to send MSU past Tech and to move the Racers to 3-2 this season.
The first half the Racers started with a bang and had many good looks at the goal by taking 11 shots. Lyssie Wright, Taylor Stevens, and Taylor Richerson led MSU in shot attempts with three. The Murray State defense followed suit with a great effort, only allowing Tech to take two shots the first half.
The match was a scoreless duel at halftime.
Shelby Haworth looked sharp in the Murray State goal. She had five saves in the match, two of which were crucial for the Racers towards the end of the second half.
Even with the team playing well on both sides of the ball, they still couldn't find the back of the net in regulation and the game was headed to overtime.
The Racers came out quick against Tech, managing to get the ball in the Lady Techster backfield fairly quickly. Taylor Richerson found herself in a one-on-one battle with a Louisiana Tech player. With a swift move, she was able get past the defender and looked towards the goal. With swift kick, Richerson put the ball low and left of the goal keeper.
This was the third overtime match and first overtime win for Head Coach Jeremy Groves at Murray State. He was pleased with the outcome, especially with goal keeper Shelby Haworth's performance.
Murray State is back in action against Middle Tennessee State on Sunday at 2 p.m. Live stats will be available at GoRacers.com. Live Video will be available courtesy of the OVC Digital Network.
FAU 2, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 0
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - The Southeast Missouri women's soccer team suffered its third straight shutout Friday evening. The Redhawks well to Florida Atlantic University, 2-0.
The Redhawks fall to 2-3-1 on the season while FAU climbs to 6-1.
The Owls' Claire Emslie scored her first goal of the season in the 16th minute of the match. Sammy Rowland fed Emslie from the top of the box. Emslie shot into the upper right corner of the goal over Kindra Lierz to take a 1-0 lead on the Redhawks.
FAU widened the score to 2-0 in the 74th minute of the match. Taylor Townsend scored off a free kick and into the lower left side of the goal.
Southeast was held to just three shots in the match. All three shots came from Kaitlin Kuznacic. Kuznacic put one of her three shots on goal and it came in the 82nd minute of the game. The Owls put up 10 shots.
Southeast had three corner kick opportunities in the game while FAU had seven.
Kindra Lierz (2-3-1) played all 90 minutes and allowed both goals. She recorded three saves.
Sydney Drinkwater (6-1) earned the solo shutout. She made one save.
Southeast was called for 14 fouls in the game while the Owls were called on seven.
The Redhawks will bring their road swing to a close on Sunday when they take on Lynn University. The Redhawks and Fighting Knights kick off at 5 p.m., CT, from Boca Raton, Florida.
BELMONT 0, EVANSVILLE 0
EVANSVILLE, Ind. - For a second consecutive contest, the Belmont women's soccer team (1-3-1) battled into extra periods before a decision was made. The Bruins fought to a 0-0 double overtime stalemate at Evansville (1-5-1) on Friday night.
From the opening whistle, the teams traded shots on the hunt for an immediate scoring opportunity. Finally emerging from the back and forth battle, the Purple Aces made a move around the 28th minute. Hoping to build on a corner kick, UE fired back-to-back shots at the Bruin goal. However, the quick hands of junior netminder Stephanie Bukovec (Toronto, Ontario, Canada) halted both attempts. Evansville kept shooting for the remainder of the half but each went wide. The teams headed into the break locked in a 0-0 tie.
After halftime, UE wasted little time again, using another corner kick to get into scoring position in just the first minute. However, Bukovec remained steady between the posts and refused to give up ground. Senior Sydney Omweg (Yorktown, Va.) had an opportunity to find the back of the net with a header attempt in the 52nd minute but her ball went wide right. The Bruins continued to fight in the waning minutes of regulation as the back and forth battle resumed.
In the first overtime period, Bukovec continued to prove her mettle between the posts. Five minutes in, Evansville went into high gear, notching two corners and two on-goal headers in the span of 45 seconds. BU withstood the onslaught but was unable to fire back during the period.
Belmont ramped up its attack in the final overtime, notching a pair of shots on goal in the first 90 seconds courtesy of freshman Allie Svoboda (Lisle, Ill.) and sophomore Heather Ferrari (Duluth, Ga.). Unfortunately, neither was able to break the stalemate on the scoreboard. The Purple Aces made one final attempt to get on the board in the 108th minute but the shot went wide right. The teams were forced to settle for their first double overtime tie of the season after 110 minutes.
Evansville held the advantage in shots, 18-6, and corner kicks, 9-4.
Six different Bruins each recorded a shot in the road effort.
Bukovec tallied five saves on the night while earning her second shutout of the season.
Belmont returns to action on Sunday with an afternoon tilt at first-time opponent Tennessee. Live stats will be available and the contest can be seen live on ESPN3 and the SEC Network.
SAINT LOUIS 2, SIUE 1
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - In their home opener, SIUE women's soccer fell to Saint Louis 2-1 in a double-overtime battle.
The Cougars fall to 1-4-2 on the season while the Billikens improve to 4-2.
SIUE scored their first and only goal of the game in the 35th minute. Goalkeeper Jennifer Pelley fired a goal kick to Cassidy Sherman, who played the ball perfectly to Caroline Hoefert, just a few yards out, for her second goal of the season.
The Cougars went into the half with a 1-0 lead, and it wasn't until the 75th minute that Saint Louis' Kirsten Clemens netted the equalizer on a through ball from Cristina Rodriguez.
Tied at one goal apiece, the game went to overtime. It wasn't until the second overtime period at the 104th minute of the game that Saint Louis scored the game-winner. Danielle Tolmais sent the ball to the back of the net from 35 yards out, just getting past Pelley to secure the win for the Billikens.
SIUE ended the game with eight total shots to Saint Louis' 24. Pelley grabbed six saves in the loss.
The Cougars turn around to play a Sunday afternoon matchup at Korte Stadium against Western Illinois. Game time is set for 1 p.m.
MEMPHIS 1, UT MARTIN 0
MEMPHIS, Tenn. - The University of Tennessee Martin women’s soccer team saw its defense rise up against American Conference opponent Memphis, however a set piece goal was the difference as the Tigers won 1-0.
The UT Martin (1-5) backline consisting of four freshmen starters forced five offsides against Memphis (3-1-1) while blocking three shots to hold the Tigers to a lone shot on net in the first half. Freshman goalkeeper MaKenzie Crawford tallied four saves for UT Martin with three coming in the final half to keep the Skyhawks within striking distance.
Offensively the Skyhawks placed three shots, two on goal while earning three corner kicks. Forwards Saphyra Coombs-James and Sierra Franz each placed their lone shot on goal while freshman midfielder Sara Ketis fired a shot wide of the Tigers’ net in the 61st minute.
Memphis got the lone goal of the match on a set piece goal early in the second half. After firing eight shots but only placing one on net in the first half, the Tigers found winning goal in the 52nd minute. After a save by Crawford conceited a corner kick, Olivia Gauthier volleyed into the box and connected with Chanel Hudson-Marks for the headed goal.
UT Martin looked for equalizers in the 72nd and 78th minute with shots by Coombs-James and Franz but was denied by Memphis goalkeeper Maryse Bard-Martel to earn the shutout.
The Skyhawks return to action next week when they travel to Nashville for an appearance in a tournament hosted by Lipscomb. During the tournament UT Martin will hit the field with matches on Thursday and Saturday against Western Carolina and Akron, each taking place at 5 p.m.
AUSTIN PEAY 7, WESTERN ILLINOIS 1
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - For the first time since 2011, Austin Peay State University women’s team scored seven goals in a single match, leading to a 7-1 victory against Western Illinois, Friday, at Morgan Brothers Soccer Field.
While there were an astonishing 14 goals in that Aug. 19, 2011 match-up at Alabama A&M, Friday’s contest still gave the APSU faithful plenty to cheer about. Freshman McKenzie Dixon recorded a hat trick, the first since Tatiana Ariza in 2013, while junior Gina Fabbro’s two goals moved her into third all-time in career scoring.
The Lady Govs (2-4-0) maintained possession of the ball throughout much of the first half, forcing the Leathernecks (1-5-0) to play on their heels as APSU pressed forward. Dixon asserted herself early on, making skills moves towards the box which led to her first score, in the 22nd minute after blasting a shot past the keeper’s right side.
Western Illinois would answer back in the 28th minute, with Brianna Hughes scoring after collecting a low cross from Skyler Jessop.
Four minutes later, the Lady Govs drew a foul in the box, and Dixon calmly collected herself to send a precision strike into the back of the net. Austin Peay held a 13-5 shot advantage by halftime and remained relentless in the final 45 minutes.
Fabbro pushed towards the Leatherneck back line in the 54th minute, making a solo run down the left side of the pitch to eventual place an 18-yard shot into the net. After APSU forced a quick turnover, senior Taylor Van Wagner joined in the attack from her new midfield role, scoring from close range after gathering a deflected ball.
Dixon completed the hat trick in the 78th minute in a third variety, firing home a free kick from roughly 25 yards to extend Austin Peay’s lead to 5-1.
As the clock dropped below eighty minutes, the Lady Govs delivered two late goals. Fabbro connected on a short shot, while freshman Jennifer Smith scored with under a minute remaining after a pass from sophomore Maggie Ethridge.
Sophomore Lindsey Todd earned the win in goal, her second of the season after allowing one goal with three saves. Senior Nikki Filippone played the final 20 minutes, picking up a save.
Austin Peay continues its homestand next weekend with matches against Kennesaw State, Friday, and Alabama State, Sunday.