THURSDAY’S SCORES
@Morehead State 2, Tennessee Tech 1
@Little Rock 1, Western Illinois 0
Southeast Missouri 0, @Southern Indiana 0
SIUE 0, @UT Martin 0
Eastern Illinois 2, @Lindenwood 0
MOREHEAD STATE 2, TENNESSEE TECH 1
MOREHEAD, Ky. - It had all the excitement and drama of a No. 1 versus No. 2 league matchup as the Morehead State Soccer team outlasted Tennessee Tech Thursday afternoon for a 2-1 positive result at the MSU Soccer Field.
The Eagles, ranked No. 2 in the OVC, improved to 6-5-5 overall and tied their most Ohio Valley Conference wins since 2015, improving to 5-1-2. MSU handed TTU (entering as the No.1 team in the table) its first loss in conference play, dropping the Golden Eagles to 7-5-4 and 6-1-1.
The scenario is set up for the MSU Eagles to claim the OVC regular season title, No. 1 seed in the tournament and host role for the final four weekend with a win Sunday at SIUE and either a loss or tie by Tech at home against Little Rock.
MSU defender Sarah Faloon got her team on the scoreboard first. At 41:34, Faloon connected her head on a free kick from fellow defender Gracen Houck and edged it past TTU goalkeeper Maggie Conrad. Faloon's header was her second goal of the year, while Houck was awarded her first career assist.
Holding a 1-0 lead in the 62nd minute, MSU's Kate Larbes was taken down from behind in the penalty box on a run to the goal and awarded a penalty chance. Senior forward Hadley Cytron took the PK and buried it in the corner for her first goal of 2023 for a 2-0 upper-hand.
The Golden Eagles cut their deficit in half at 68:31. While trying to clear it from their own defensive zone, MSU's ball careened off Tech's Katie Toney, with the trajectory taking it over the head of MSU goalkeeper Erin Gibbs. Toney was credited with the goal.
TTU appeared to tie the match minutes later, but Yao Giada Zhou's goal was reversed after a late offside call was deemed the appropriate action.
Morehead State held the offensive advantage in shots, 19-15, while TTU had three more shots on goal, 8-5. Gibbs kept her team in the match with seven saves, including three diving, punched-away attempts destined for the back of the net. Tech put the pressure on in the final half with 11 of its 15 shots.
LITTLE ROCK 1, WESTERN ILLINOIS 0
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - The Little Rock Trojans reign supreme over the Western Illinois Leathernecks to claim their second straight OVC tournament bid.
The first half was dominated by the Trojans as they out shot the Leathernecks 13-1. Despite this large shot differential, the Leathernecks defense stood tall and did not concede a goal. Thus, the first half ended with a 0-0 tie.
The second half was much of the same as the Trojans would out shoot the Leathernecks 12-2. Even with another lead in the shot count, the Trojans still struggled to find the net; however, Amaya Arias rose to the occasion in the 82nd minute scoring a penalty goal which would go on to be the game winning goal.
While the Trojans celebrated their playoff clinching win, it was also a night of recognition for the three seniors who played their last regular season game at the Coleman Sports Complex. Sanaa Williams, Karina De Paoli, and Addison Yinger all were recognized for their hard work and great representation of this program.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 0, SOUTHERN INDIANA 0
EVANSVILLE, Tenn. - Continuing the march toward the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament, University of Southern Indiana Women's Soccer posted its third straight draw with a 0-0 tie against Southeast Missouri State University Thursday night at Strassweg Field.
Both teams came out of the gates looking to gain control of the match. USI redshirt goalkeeper Anna Markland (Hoover, Alabama) got her gloves on the ball early with a pair of easy saves. The Screaming Eagles' first shot came in the 12th minute off the foot of sophomore midfielder Emma Thurston (Leawood, Kansas).
Southern Indiana generated a pair of chances in the 26th minute from senior defender Alexis Schone (Galena, Ohio) and sophomore midfielder Peyton Murphy (Bargersville, Indiana), tracking down a loose ball in the attacking penalty box. Each team produced three shots on goal in the first half.
The back-and-forth stalemate continued into the second half. Despite attacking opportunities for both teams, neither budged on the scoreboard. Markland saw a couple of shots come her way in the early portion of the second half, but she collected saves on both.
USI had a few opportunistic looks late in the match. With under 10 minutes remaining, Southern Indiana moved down the field and was rewarded with several tries in the attacking third. Following a throw-in pass, freshman midfielder Pilar Torres (Chula Vista, California) had the ball come to her feet inside the top of the penalty box, but her shot was knocked away by the Redhawks' goalkeeper Sophia Elfrink. A couple of minutes later, Thurston had a shot that was off the mark before Alexis Schone had a header off a free kick blocked away.
In the contest, the Eagles tallied 11 shots and the Redhawks had nine. Both teams put five shots on target. Alexis Schone had a game-high four shots, Murphy had three with two on frame, and Thurston had two shot attempts. Markland recorded five saves in goal, claiming her sixth shutout of the season.
The Screaming Eagles moved to 4-6-7 this season with a 3-1-4 conference record, extending the team's season-best unbeaten streak to six matches. Southeast Missouri moved to 6-5-4 on the year with a 2-3-3 mark in OVC play. With Morehead State University's win over Tennessee Tech University on Thursday to solidify those two schools as the top two teams and the double-bye, Southern Indiana now knows it will be playing next week in the OVC Tournament. USI remained tied with Southern Illinois University Edwardsville at 13 points. The third through eighth seeds and who will be hosting the first two rounds of the OVC Tournament will be determined following this Sunday's games.
SIUE 0, UT MARTIN 0
MARTIN, Tenn. - In front of 581 fans (eighth-best crowd in Skyhawk Field history), the University of Tennessee at Martin soccer team grinded out a 0-0 draw against SIUE.
The UT Martin defense earned their third shutout of the season by holding SIUE to zero shots on goal. Goalkeeper Poppy Bastock played the full 90 minutes along with Izzy Patterson, Joelle Stinson, Makayla Robinson, Catey Hunt, Gwen Walters, Allie Buchmann, Shayla Addington and Brooke Kala.
Freshman Peyton Cook paced the Skyhawks in shots with two while Patterson (one), Stinson (one), Robinson (one), McHenry (one), Kala (one), Jordan Bailey (one) and Rachel Okoro (one) each accounted for an attempt.
The momentum shifted back-and-forth throughout a first half that featured exciting breakaways and physical defense. That trend would carry over to the second half with defense beginning to dominate the final 45 minutes.
As both teams denied each other of any offensive runs, UT Martin broke through in the final moments but couldn't pull through for the winner as each side earned a point in the conference standings.
EASTERN ILLINOIS 2, LINDENWOOD 0
ST. CHARLES, Mo. - With only one more game left to play, Eastern Illinois and Lindenwood entered tonight's match with a lot on their plate. Before the first whistle was blown, only nine points separated the third from the last place in the OVC standings. Therefore, to stay in the fight for a spot in the tournament, both teams not only needed the win, but also could not afford to lose.
With that in mind, the Panthers started the match firing up early. In the 3rd minute, Cam Korhorn hit the left post with a shot that was deflected by the Lions goalkeeper beforehand. As both teams were aware of the importance of the match, the game settled with a lot of room for physical battles, and not so much for offensive plays. EIU's last opportunity of the half came in the 41st minute, when Zenaya Barnes turned with the ball almost inside the six yard box, but could place the shot on target. At halftime, the Panthers and the Lions were tied at nil.
The second half started just like the first ended, with physical battles everywhere on the field. In the 62nd minute, Abby Reinl got fouled inside the box, and senior midfielder Cami Lummus did not miss the penalty kick opportunity, putting the Panthers up 1-0. With only six minutes left, Alex Tetteh broke through the Lion's defense to double EIU's lead with a low right shot. EIU then held the 2-0 lead up to the final whistle.
Goalkeeper Ella Kratochvil posted four saves in net to help EIU secure its fourth clean sheet of the season. It was also the third shutout for Kratochvi in the year.
EIU outshot Lindenwood 11-8.
With the win, EIU secured a spot in the OVC tournament at the end of the month, as Lindenwood and Western Illinois are no longer capable of reaching the same eight points as the Panthers with one game left to play.