On Thursday, UNI women’s soccer took to Murray State for the first time to play against the Racers. The Panthers three-game Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) win streak was cut short by the Racers. The Racers showed no mercy as they came out right away scoring two goals within the first 15 minutes of play. And then adding a third one in the 29th minute. Later on, Murray State added another goal just shortly after halftime.
In the 86th minute of the game, Sophia Balistreri of the Panthers scored her first of the season and the only Panther goal of the game. The Panthers struggled to find their rhythm throughout the game as Murray State continued to dominate. UNI had seven total shots and two shots on goal in the opening 45 minutes, but could only capitalize on one of them.
Out of halftime, the Panthers attempted to increase their pressure on the Racers, in order to try and chip at their leads. But, the Racers quickly found their fourth goal after just 10 minutes of the second half. The Panthers kept the Racers quiet for the rest of the game after that and later found themselves with a score in the 86th minute of the match before the game concluded.
The Panthers continued their trek to Belmont on Sunday to face the Bruins in a conference matchup. The Panthers quickly found their rhythm and bounced back after a tough loss at Murray State taking the bread against the Bruins 1-0 and adding to their conference wins. UNI’s one goal came from Olivia Knoepfle in the 10th minute of the and continued to hold throughout the game. Maddie Eastus and Lauren Heinsch helped to set up the goal for Knoepfle with an excellent passing sequence.
Defense is what held the game together for the Panthers as the Bruins continued to try and come out with a bang but stood no match. The Bruins were unable to capitalize on several scoring attempts. Though the Bruins were slow to make things happen, they did take a 5-1 advantage of total shots from the Panthers, after having multiple chances to score inside the Panthers 18-yard box in consecutive opportunities.
In the second half, both teams played a very slow start. Offensively, both teams were unable to generate and get things going. The first and only shot of the second half came from the Bruins in the 86th minute in an effort to score a goal before time ran out, but they were unable to do so. UNI’s defense held strong against them by not allowing the Bruins to score in the second half. This victory places the Panthers at second in the conference behind Drake, at just one point behind them.
