The UNI women’s soccer team faced the Belmont Bruins at home for their regular season finale on Sunday, Oct. 23. They tied 0-0, which was their sixth tie in seven games. The defense was especially strong for UNI, keeping Belmont from even getting one shot.

It was slow going for the UNI offense early, but they had a flurry of shots beginning in the 19th minute. From then until the 27th minute, UNI got five shots, including a shot on goal by Ashley Harrington that got the run started and another to end it by Lizzie Mewes. Unfortunately, the Panthers could not come away with points. Harrington got their final shot of the first period in the 31st minute, and the game went into halftime scoreless.

Harrington got a quick shot for UNI just 15 seconds into the second half. It took a while for UNI to get their next shot, but in the 55th minute, Caroline Hazen got a shot on goal. A short while later, Lauren Heinsch also got a shot on goal in the 56th minute. Both were saved by the Belmont goalkeeper. UNI got three more shots in a little over four minutes from between the 59th and 63rd minutes, but could not convert any of those opportunities. A couple corner kicks late gave UNI a chance to score, but neither went in, and so the game ended in a 0-0 tie.

UNI dominated on defense, holding Belmont to zero shots and just one corner kick while getting 12 shots, four shots on goal and three corner kicks. UNI also mostly avoided fouls. They only acquired two in the game compared to Belmont’s 11. Harrington led UNI in shots with five. Heinsch joined her with a multi-shot game of three. Harrington, Heinsch, Mewes, and Hazen all had one shot on goal each. Sophia Meier and Jaylie Hicklin each had one of UNI’s other two shots.

UNI finished the regular season sixth in the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) standings with a conference record of 2-2-6. Their overall record was 5-5-7. The sixth-place finish allowed them to make the eight-team conference tournament. They face seventh-place Belmont in a rematch in Chicago on Thursday, Oct. 27, at 2 p.m. If they win that game, they would move on to face the third-place UIC Flames in Chicago on Sunday, Oct. 30, at noon. A win there would send them to the semifinals to face the second-place Missouri State Bears in Valparaiso, Ind. on Thursday, Nov. 3, at 3 p.m. The MVC Championship game is scheduled for Sunday, Nov. 6, at 1 p.m. in Valparaiso. All MVC tournament games are available to stream on ESPN+.