SUNDAY'S SCORES
Morehead State 1,
@Little Rock 0
@Tennessee Tech 2, Middle Tennessee 0
@Memphis 4,
UT Martin 0
MOREHEAD STATE 1, LITTLE ROCK 0
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - The Morehead State soccer team put forth a defensive masterpiece Sunday afternoon at Little Rock as the Eagles claimed their Ohio Valley Conference opener.
Fifth-year defender Chelsea Elmore's first career goal held up as the Eagles knocked off the Trojans 1-0 on their home turf. The Eagles moved to 2-4-3 and, crucially, to 1-0 in the OVC and three points in the standings. The Eagles defeated LR for the second consecutive season.
In the 42nd minute, Elmore capitalized on a rebound and put the ball in the back of the net for the first time in her career. Freshman midfielder Mary Trudeau was credited with her first career assist.
It was just one of three shots by the visiting team, which leads the league in shots, but the Eagle defense held Little Rock scoreless. The Trojans entered the match leading the conference in most goals scored. Of Little Rock's nine shots, only three were on goal.
Sophomore goalkeeper Erin Gibbs stopped all three on-target attempts and was bestowed her fourth career shutout.
TENNESSEE TECH 2, MIDDLE TENNESSEE 2
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - The Tennessee Tech soccer team sealed the deal on its non-conference slate with a 2-2 draw in Sunday night's get-together with Middle Tennessee at Tech Soccer Field.
In the final match before the start of OVC play, the Golden Eagles (1-4-3) found themselves in the driver's seat with a two-goal edge thanks to a score late in the first half and another one early in the second, but the Blue Raiders found a way to equalize the affair behind a late comeback to pull even with the purple and gold.
Sadie Sterbenz put MTSU (3-5-2) on the board with a goal in the 73rd minute, with the freshman tallying her first career score off of a Blue Raider corner kick, before Middle Tennessee officially knotted the action with an Eleanor Gough net-finder in the 87th minute. A Tech turnover on the outskirts of the box allowed Gough to capture it, before the senior out of Milton Keynes, England let loose on a drive that found the back of the right side of the net.
Once they put that first one in the back of the net to make it 2-1, it became more frantic out there and that's something our team will need to do a better job of and that's closing out games a little bit better than what we have done," Springthorpe continued. "It was a hard-fought game tonight. I'm sure the fans had a great time watching and ultimately, we are glad to get out of there with no injuries and to get at least a tie going into conference play."
TTU's pair of scores occurred within an eight-minute span after Yao Giada Zhou first split the pipes in the 42nd minute and Neve Renwick did her damage in the 50th minute. Giada Zhou's first score of the season saw a pair of freshmen pick up assists on the play, with Tori Soutuyo and Ashley Wood each earning helpers that aided the Golden Eagles in denting the scoreboard. Soutuyo connected with Wood, who then promptly crossed it to Giada Zhou for the finish.
Tech's second score saw two more rookies get in on the fun, with Melina Hamm sending a through ball to Renwick, who took care of the rest with a rocket into the back of the net. Renwick's goal was her third of the season and third in the last two contests after picking up a pair in TTU's 3-1 win over Lipscomb in the club's last match on Sept. 10. The Sheffield, England native also paced the match with a career-best seven shots, the most by a Golden Eagle in a single tilt this year.
Soutuyo, Wood and Hamm all tabbed their first collegiate assist.
Junior goalkeeper Maggie Conrad secured six stops in the draw, while Hannah Suder collected four saves for the Blue Raiders. Yana Yordanova led MTSU with five total shots.
The OVC opener with the Lions on Sept. 21 is scheduled for a 7 p.m. CT kickoff in St. Charles, Mo.
MEMPHIS 4, UT MARTIN 0
MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Recap coming soon.