MOREHEAD, Ky. – Morehead State Soccer finished nearly even with Indiana State offensively but fell 2-1 at MSU Soccer Field on Thursday afternoon.
"A really frustrating result, we can't be losing these types of games if we expect to be OVC champions in 8 weeks time," said Head Coach
Paul Cox. "We addressed the minor details from Sunday that could help prevent goals and unfortunately it's happened again. We had multiple opportunities to tie the game back up but sometimes that's just football."
The Eagles were originally supposed to kick off at 8 P.M. ET., but due to the possibility of inclement weather, the game was pushed up to an 11 A.M. ET. start time.
The game started in a gloomy, rainy setting. From player introductions into the majority of the first half, the game was played in a steady downfall.
Morehead State jumped to the offensive attack early on, something that Coach Cox had preached in previous matches.
In just the fourth minute of the game, Indiana State was called for a handball in the box, which led to a penalty kick from the Eagles.
Gaia Fubelli took the penalty kick, sneaking it past the Sycamore goalie Sofie Hansen to give the Eagles an early 1-0 lead.
Gaia Fubelli's goal was the first of her collegiate career. MSU has now had nine different goal scores, eight of which were first time goal scorers.
Fubelli's goal is the first converted penalty kick goal since 2023.
In the 17th minute,
Natalie Lentine fired a shot that ricocheted off a Sycamore defender and fell to
Ashton Lynam, whose attempt was also deflected. The ball then bounced to
Faith Peper, who tried to sneak a shot past Hansen, but the Indiana State keeper made the save, finally clearing the scurry in front of the goal and giving the Sycamores a much-needed sigh of relief.
In the 27th minute, Meagyn Riffle broke free in front of the goal and fired a shot that Eagles keeper
Allie Lammers saved. The ball bounced off Lammers and trickled back out in front of the net, falling perfectly to Hailey Morgan, who cleaned up the play and found the back of the net for Indiana State. Riffle was credited with the assist on Morgan's goal, which tied the game at 1-1.
Just before halftime,
Hailey Repreza lined up a free kick from around 35 yards out that bounced off the top of the crossbar. The ball bounced vertically in front of the goal without crossing the line, before
Carly Gilbert got a foot on it for another attempt. However, Hansen was there to make the save and preserve the 1-1 tie heading into halftime.
Thirteen minutes into the second half, Emily Lopez dribbled past several Eagle defenders before turning and firing a rocket past Lammers into the left side of the net, putting the Sycamores ahead 2-1 in the 58th minute.
MSU continued its offensive attack in search of an equalizer, with its best opportunity coming from Peper in the 77th minute. Peper spun in front of the goal before launching a shot toward the top of the net, but Hansen pushed it over the crossbar for another big-time save.
Indiana State would hold on its 2-1 lead until the final whistle, improving to 4-1-3 on the season. The Eagles fall for only the second time at home, dropping to 4-5 on the season.
The competition was evenly matched throughout, with Indiana State holding a slight 52-48% advantage in possession. Both teams finished with 17 shots, while the Sycamores held a 9-8 edge in shots on goal. Both goalkeepers also recorded seven saves, while Indiana State held a 7-5 advantage in corner kicks.
Morehead State will return to action on Sept. 17, when the Eagles travel to Huntsville, Alabama, to take on Alabama A&M for the second to last non-conference match.
