MOREHEAD, Ky. – On Sunday in Charleston, Ill., the Morehead State women's soccer team played its fifth 1-0 game this season. Unfortunately for the Eagles, host Eastern Illinois came out on top at Lakeside Field. MSU now sits 3-2 in one-goal games this fall.
Morehead State (3-10/1-3-0) played statistically even with the Panthers but the afternoon's lone score in the 21st minute proved to be the difference. It was the team's third straight defeat.
"Solid performance; (we) didn't deserve to lose," MSU head coach
Paul Cox said. "Very similar to the USI game, but unfortunately the luck isn't falling our way. We could've had two penalties, but the ref didn't give them."
Coupled with results around the Ohio Valley Conference, the Eagles are now in danger of not qualifying for the league's eight-team tournament. MSU sits in ninth place with five games to play. The good news is the Eagles have contests remaining with the two teams it trails for those last spots, SIU Edwardsville (which it will meet on October 19 in Illinois) and Southeast Missouri (which it will host on October 26).
Morehead State's road woes continued as the team has dropped its last seven matches away from home and sport a 0-6 mark in road outings this year. MSU also fell to 1-4-2 in games after a week off in the last two years. Its three wins are the fewest in a complete season since 2017.
The Panthers improved to 3-1-1 at home this year and extended their unbeaten streak to seven outings, including claiming six straight shutouts. EIU has held its opponents scoreless for 550 minutes and 45 seconds. It has outscored its foes 11-1 since its last loss on August 31. Conversely, MSU has now gone over 322 minutes without a goal. It has been outscored 27-6 this fall.
It was Eastern Illinois' seventh shutout this season. Morehead State has gone scoreless seven times. However, it is not in unfamiliar territory. The Eagles were shut out eight times in 2022, but still finished the year with a .500 record (7-7-4).
On Sunday, the Blue and Gold had a slight edge in shots, 17-15, although Eastern Illinois (7-4-2/4-0-0) had a 6-4 advantage in shots on goal. On another positive note, it is the Eagle club's sixth straight game with double digit shots and the third time this season it has outshot its opponent.
The ball started on EIU's side of the field for virtually the entire first six minutes, although it was largely held by the hosts. However, after that, the tempo changed and the Panthers were able to ramp up their offense.
They already had a 4-0 lead in shots when Abby Reinl headed in an 8-yard attempt from the right side of the field over the arms of MSU redshirt sophomore goalkeeper
Sofia Rodriguez at the 20:55 mark.
The play began with a throw in to Alex Tetteh, who passed the ball back to Camylle Graves. Just minutes after she had entered the game, Graves' one-touch lofted forward pass found Reinl on the right side of the goal box, where she headed it back toward the left post and into the net.
Rodriguez was making her first career start after MSU sophomore
Claire Cress was a late scratch due to an illness.
Rodriguez, who had only played 45 minutes prior to Sunday, made a jumping save off a corner kick by punching a point-blank shot over the crossbar in the ninth minute. She finished the day with five saves.
Morehead State had a pair of solid scoring opportunities, both of which came off the left foot of freshman forward
Jade Walton.
In the 49th minute, she got behind the defense and down to the end line on the right side, then turned inward and launched a shot that went just outside of the far post. In the 61st minute, she received a pass nearly 30 yards away from the goal, spun and unleashed a blast that forced EIU keeper Ella Kratochvil to jump and punch the ball over the bar.
MSU seemingly had another chance when early in the 81st minute, junior defender/midfielder
Molly Tapak made a cross from the left side to the middle of the box where senior midfielder
Kennedy Baquero got tangled with Kylie Mahoney sending both to the ground, but no call was made, despite numerous pleads by the Eagles. Junior defender/midfielder
Hannah Carter was eventually able to recover the ball and took a shot from the right side that went outside the near post.
Outside of goals, Eastern Illinois had narrow leads in corner kicks (5-2), shots on goal and fouls (7-8). Morehead State had more shots and saves, and fewer offside flags (0-2). Neither team received a card.
Walton fell just short of her team season high shot total with five. Graduate student midfielder
Karissa Vela had three. Tetteh had four shots to pace the hosts, while Reinl added three.
Kratochvil had four saves for the Panthers.
EIU had possession of the ball for 59 percent of the game and was on the attack 67 percent of that time. MSU spent 60 percent of its time with the ball in the Panther defensive half.
Morehead State returns home to host defending OVC regular season champion Tennessee Tech on Thursday at 4 p.m.
