Box Score

MURRAY, Ky. – It was a memorable homecoming for Eastern Kentucky University senior Hayley Wright on Friday, as the Murray, Ky. native scored a goal late in the second half to lift the visiting Colonels past Ohio Valley Conference foe Murray State, 1-0, at Cutchin Field.

It was EKU’s first-ever win in Murray, and with it, the second-place Colonels have now won three straight games to improve to 10-6-2 (6-2-1 OVC) and remain alive in the hunt for an OVC regular season title. First-place UT Martin (9-5-3, 6-1-1 OVC) plays at Jacksonville State tonight at 8:00 p.m.

EKU’s 10 overall wins and six conference wins are the most in program history.

“I’m really proud of the result today,” head coach Lindsay Basalyga said. “We had to battle through some adversity, but we stayed focused and composed and found a way to get the result. Hayley had a great, composed goal late in the second half and we stayed disciplined defensively to keep the shutout.”

With both teams locked in a defensive battle for much of the afternoon, Wright finally broke through in the 72nd minute as she took advantage of a Murray State turnover and beat Racer goalkeeper, Latisha Stevenson, one-on-one to notch the game-winner. It was Wright’s second goal in EKU’s last three games.

Murray State (4-12-0, 2-7-0 OVC) outshot EKU, 19-14, in the game; however, the Racers could not take advantage of their edge in opportunities. EKU junior Nikki Donnelly led all players in the game with four shots, two of which were on goal.

Senior Deja Tennon, junior Lauren Fant and sophomore Paige Larkin all went the distance on an EKU backline that has now recorded four shutouts on the season.

Freshman Erika Wolfer, meanwhile, made seven saves in goal for the Colonels to earn her third shutout of the fall.

“We love playing at home because of the energy and atmosphere created by our fans, so we talked a lot this week about how we can create that same energy on the road,” Basalyga said. “The team rose to that challenge and we had a much more focused and relaxed start compared to previous road games.”

EKU returns to action on Sunday afternoon when the Colonels face Austin Peay in their regular season finale at 3:00 p.m.