BROOKINGS, S.D. – The Drake University women's soccer team earned its third draw of the season after a 1-1 tie against the South Dakota State Jackrabbits on Sunday afternoon from Fishback Soccer Park. The Bulldogs scored in the 80th minute to take a late lead, but the Jackrabbits found the back of the net for an equalizer in the 89th minute. 
 
The first 45 minutes of action saw neither the Bulldogs nor the Jackrabbits net a goal as both squads found limited opportunities on the offensive end. Drake totaled just two shots in the first half, neither of them on target, and SDSU tallied five shots with three coming on goal and all three being saved by Addie Ford.
 
After the halftime break, South Dakota State came out aggressive and continued to test Ford in goal as the Jackrabbits upped their shot total to 24, nine of which were on target, by the end of the match. It was Drake, however, that broke the scoreless tie.
 
It took until the 80th minute of play, but the Bulldogs finally were able to break through with forward Eve Blakey tucking one into the net, scoring her first goal of the year, giving Drake the 1-0 advantage. Defender Izzy Snowden was credited with the assist, her first of the season, on Blakey's goal.
 
With time winding down, the Jackrabbits started to push forward in hopes for an equalizing goal which came to fruition in the final minute of play. Zoe Wittkop, who was assisted by Solala Nasu, got her shot past Ford to knot the match at 1-1 and the final whistle blew moments later.
 
"This is a hard place to play, both the atmosphere and the opponent," Drake head coach Lindsey Horner said. "This was an incredibly gritty performance by us. We never did control the flow of the game, but we showed moments on the counter to look dangerous. We dedicated so much training this week to attacking corners, so we are pleased that we were rewarded with a goal. We could have managed the end of the game better to preserve the lead, but they threw so many numbers forward and we were into the wind there at the end that we were truly hanging on for the result. We head home for two more tune-up games prior to MVC play that absolutely need to be the catalyst for us to gain momentum."
 
Drake will now return to Des Moines for two-straight home matches versus Green Bay (Sep. 12) and Western Illinois (Sep. 15).