FRIDAY'S SCORES
@Murray State 2, Indiana 1
@Southern Illinois 1,
Belmont 0
Mercer 1,
@Austin Peay 0
Lipscomb 3,
@Jacksonville State 0
@Kansas City 2,
Eastern Illinois 1
@Arizona State 7,
Tennessee Tech 1
MURRAY STATE 2, INDIANA 1
MURRAY, Ky. - Murray State women's soccer returned home to host Indiana in a non-conference competition at Cutchin Field on Friday afternoon. Goals from Lilly Strader and Rebecca Kubin propelled the Racers to their second-straight victory as they defeated the Hoosiers 2-1 in Murray, Kentucky.
Murray State would be the first team on the scoreboard when Lilly Strader struck a laser into the top corner in the 28th minute of play. The first career goal for the freshman out of Hopkinsville, Kentucky gave the Racers a 1-0 advantage heading into halftime. Both teams had landed three shots on target through the first 45 minutes of action.
As both sides kept a high tempo of play to open the second half, the Hoosiers would equalize in the 50th minute when Jaimie Tottleben scored her first goal of the season for Indiana.
With the score line reading 1-1 with just 11 minutes left in regulation, freshman goalkeeper Jenna Villacres stepped up in a critical moment and denied Avery Lockwood from point blank range to keep the match level in the final stages of the afternoon.
Building off the energy of recent defensive efforts, the Racers were able to now utilize the momentum on the offensive end in the ensuing minutes when junior Rebecca Kubin netted her second goal of the season in the 81st minute to give Murray State a 2-1 advantage with less than 10 minute remaining.
Kubin, who received a ball in space from Parker Greer after Greer won back possession in the defensive third, separated herself from the last defender before neatly placing the ball in the lower corner to reclaim the lead for her side.
A solid defensive effort preserved the Racer lead in the closing minutes and secured a 2-1 victory over the Hoosiers.
The Racers tallied 13 shots in the triumph over Indiana in their first-ever match against a current member of the Big Ten conference.
The Racers will try for three-straight victories in their next time out when they take on Northern Kentucky on the road in Highland Heights on Sunday afternoon.
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS 1, BELMONT 0
CARBONDALE, Ill.- With Belmont meeting Southern Illinois for the first time in program history, the Salukis snagged the first win of the series with a 1-0 victory over the Bruins on Friday night at the Lew Hartzog Track and Field Complex.
With Southern Illinois giving out stadium horns to the first 100 fans in the stadium, Carbondale quickly turned into a mock FIFA World Cup environment. The Bruins used that feeling to be the early aggressor, outshooting the Salukis in the first half.
SIU's offensive opportunities were knocked away by the Belmont defense in the penalty area or resulted in a drawn foul, giving the Bruins the advantage in possession during the final stretch of the first 45 minutes. The Bruins set up Julie Garst for two shot on goal opportunities in the final two minutes of the first half, giving them the momentum heading into the locker room.
Belmont continued its aggression in the second half, with Rachel Vernon knocking the ball out of play to save the potential goal in the 54th minute. In a match with limited offensive opportunities in the second half, SIU capitalized off a free kick situation in the 61st minute.
After a foul was called on Belmont, the Salukis scored the go-ahead goal courtesy of Kaitlyn Stone off the assist from Andrea Rodriguez. The Bruins attempted to claw their way to tie it up, gaining shot opportunities in the late minutes.
SIU goalkeeper Dariana Mihalache prevented the match from going into a tie, collecting four saves in the process.
Belmont's next outing is at Rose Park, the first time the Bruins have seen their home field during the 2019 season. The Bruins take on Georgia for the first time in program history on Thursday at 6:30 p.m.
LIPSCOMB 3, JACKSONVILLE STATE 0
JACKSONVILLE, Ala. - The Jacksonville State soccer team suffered its first loss of the season after dropping a 3-0 decision to Lipscomb on Friday night at the JSU Soccer Field.
The Gamecocks dropped to 2-1 overall and will look to bounce back from the result on Sunday with a battle with in-state rival North Alabama on Sunday in Florence, Alabama. Kick off is set for 1 p.m. on the UNA campus and the contest will be streamed on ESPN+, the online platform of ESPN.
The Lady Bisons, who picked up their first road win of the season, stuck quickly with all three goals within the first 20 minutes of the outing. Olivia Doak put LU on the scoreboard in the 10th minute with a goal right in front of the Jax State goal. Maycie McKay, who had an assist on two of the three goals on the night, recorded her first of the night on the opening goal. Three minutes later LU added the second goal on the foot of Kaitlin Echols for a 2-0 lead. Hailey Eck capped off the scoring during an eight-minute span with a goal in the 18th minute. McKay helped with her second assist of the evening.
After collecting 12 of its 18 shots in the first half, JSU limited LU to six in the second half. JSU posted a pair of shots in each half.
Eads, from Orange City, Florida and Luque Bonaire, Georgia logged all 90 minutes each in the result. JSU goalkeeper Chloe Russo accumulated eight saves against the Lady Bisons.
The Gamecocks will look to even the series with the Lions after dropping a 1-0 decision in Jacksonville. The UNA match will be the beginning of four consecutive matches against programs within the Yellowhammer State. Following Sunday at UNA, Jax State will travel to Troy and Alabama State next weekend before returning to the JSU Soccer Field on Thursday, September 12, hosting the Crimson Tide of Alabama.
KANSAS CITY 2, EASTERN ILLINOIS 1
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Kansas City women’s soccer team scored in the first ten minutes of Friday night’s match and held off Eastern Illinois 2-1.
The Panthers fall to 0-2 on the season and will play at Milwaukee next Friday evening. Kansas City is now 3-0.
Kansas City jumped in front at the 9:38 mark as Rylan Childers converted the first goal of the match.
Kansas City was on the attack most of the evening as EIU goalkeeper Sara Teteak was credited with ten saves in the match.
Carly Janike scored in the first ten minutes of the second half for Kansas City on an assist from Amanda Sampson. The goal in the 53rd minute put Kansas City up 2-0.
EIU broke through for its first goal of the season in the 76th minute as freshman Nicoletta Anuci found the back of the net. It was one of two shots she had for the night.
Itxaso Aguero added two shots and Sarah DeWolf one for the Panthers.