BOX SCORE

RICHMOND, Ky. – The Eastern Kentucky University women’s soccer team remained unbeaten in home openers as the Colonels blanked Xavier, 1-0, on Sunday afternoon at EKU Soccer Field for their first win of the season. Senior Carly Muller provided the game-winner with a breakaway goal in the 32nd minute.

“Like I said before the season, value is defined by results, and I’m happy that they got their first result today,” head coach Lindsay Basalyga said. “I think they’ve grown as a team over this first weekend, and I’m pleased to see that.”

In the 28th minute, Muller found herself in a near-identical breakaway situation, only she fired her shot right at Xavier goalkeeper Jennifer Perri and was denied. Four minutes later, though, off a perfectly-placed assist by fellow senior Alex Raich, she found herself on another breakaway, this time hesitated, got Perri moving and buried her shot into the lower left corner of the goal.

“On the first breakaway, I struck it too early,” Muller said. “I should’ve taken more touches. The second time around, though, I took just the right amount of touches.”

It was Muller’s fourth career goal and Raich’s second career assist.

It also proved to be all the Colonels needed as the EKU backline shut down the Xavier offense the rest of the way to record its first shutout of the season.

“We have a lot of new girls on the backline, but we’re really connecting,” junior Stephanie Murray said. “It’s a big confidence booster to know we can shut down teams like that.”

“We lost a lot of seniors off the backline, so I’m really proud of the way the new defenders have stepped up and come together as a unit,” Basalyga said of her team’s defensive performance.

Senior Stephanie Lynch played all 90 minutes in goal to record her first shutout of the year and 18th of her career. She made four saves on the day, including a spectacular save in which she leapt and pinned the ball against the cross bar on a Xavier free kick.

Xavier outshot the Colonels on the day, 11-7; however, nine of the Musketeers’ shots came in the second half when they were desperately trying to even the score.

The Colonels will go on the road this weekend to play at Kansas on Friday and at SIU Edwardsville on Sunday.

“We set the bar high for home performances today,” Muller said. “Hopefully we can live up to it.”