NORMAL, Ill. – The Drake University women's soccer team was edged by Evansville, 2-0, in the semifinals of the Missouri Valley Conference Championship on Friday (Nov. 7).
“Evansville deserved to be up in the first half,” said Drake head coach Lindsey Horner. “We weren't sharp to start the game, but thought we could get to halftime to make adjustments.”
Evansville (11-4-3) collected one goal in each half to eliminate Drake (9-9-2) as the Purple Aces advance to the championship match on Sunday (Nov. 9), where they will face top-seeded Illinois State.
Bronwyn Boswell scored the first goal for Evansville in the game's 45th minute (44:18) to give the Purple Aces a 1-0 advantage heading into the halftime break.
Late in the second half, Montana Porteneir added another goal at the 73:04 mark to extend Evansville's lead to 2-0.
“We came out a lot better in the second half, but in the end we didn't perform at our best,” commented Horner. “I credit Evansville for putting us under pressure and finishing two of its three good chances. In the end we want to be competing for championships, but as the stage gets bigger we have to be at our best.”
The Bulldogs were outshot in the opening half 12-4, and 22-10 in the game. Senior Ashlie Stokes (Sioux City, Iowa) and sophomore Rebecca Rodgers (Peotone, Ill.) led Drake with four-shot performances. Rodgers and Stokes each had two shots on goal, while Rhian Pritchard (Overland Park, Kan.) had the squad's other shot on goal.
Sophomore goalkeeper Kylynn Moyer (Omaha, Neb.) recorded five saves for Drake.
“When the pain of this loss goes away, we will be able to be proud of what we accomplished coming off of a very hard 2013 season,” Horner said. “I'm proud of our seniors and thankful for their commitment to impact our program. We had a lot of young players on the field tonight that can lead us in the offseason and continue to develop and mature as players.”
Drake has advanced to the tournament semifinals in each of the last two campaigns. The all-time series record between the Bulldogs and the Purple Aces is now split at 9-9.
