BOX SCORE

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MOREHEAD, Ky. – The Eastern Kentucky University women’s soccer team picked up a point in the conference standings by battling the top-ranked team in the OVC, Morehead State, to a nil-nil tie Friday night at Jayne Stadium.

“We weren’t very dangerous in the first half,” head coach Lindsay Basalyga said. “But we made some changes in the second half in terms of mentality, took some chances on the attack and had some nice scoring opportunities. To walk away with a tie, on the road against the first-place team in the conference, we’ll take it.”

After Morehead State (5-6-3, 2-0-2 OVC) outshot EKU (4-7-2, 1-1-2 OVC), 7-2, in the first half, the Colonels responded by recording six shots to the Eagles’ two in the second half.

In the first overtime period, junior midfielder Alex Raich nearly ended it. The Overland Park, Kan. native launched a shot from deep that Eagles keeper Lily Meisner went back on and made a great save to keep the game alive.

After two grueling overtime periods, the game ended in a tie.

“We came out and competed tonight,” senior defender Jessica Goshert said. “We played with more heart and intensity than we have in the past.”

In doing so, the Colonel backline recorded its fifth shutout of the season (and third in the past four games), second most in the OVC.

Junior keeper Stephanie Lynch played 91 minutes in the net for EKU and made five saves, but early in the first overtime, she took a knee to the head and had to go to the bench. Redshirt freshman Emma Werner filled her spot admirably, holding the Eagles scoreless over the final 19 minutes of the game.

“Emma stepped in and made some really big plays,” Basalyga said.

Freshman midfielder Alex Hess led the Colonels with four shots on Friday, two of which were on goal.

“We played strong tonight and battled for the entire 110 minutes,” senior defender Maddy Shumaker said. “We’re really starting to come together as a team. We need to start finishing our scoring opportunities, but this game was a good step forward.”

The Colonels return to action on Sunday at EKU Soccer Field when they take on Francis Marion in their final non-conference game of the season at 1:00 p.m.