ROLLA, Mo. -- The Miners beat McKendree 2-1 yesterday, earning them their first win over a nationally ranked team since 2009. The Bearcats entered the match ranked #23 in the country with a 9-1 record, having just beaten Lincoln of Missouri 13-1 two days earlier.
The Bearcats scored first in the match, with Lena Higgins scoring her 8th goal of the season in the 7th minute of the game. McKendree continued to pressure the Miners offense, with
Anastasia Barcom (St. Louis, MO/Rosati-Kain) getting a pair of key saves in under 11 minutes.
In the 27th minute, the Miners'
Jenna Marti (Sammamish, WA/Eastside Catholic) took a shot from the right side of the goalie box and found the back of the net (assist
Greycen Erisman (Lee's Summit, MO/Lee's Summit West)) to tie the score at 1-1. The Miners continued to possess the ball well up to the half, with the only other shot on goal in the remaining minutes coming from
Ava Hoenes (Columbia, MO/Hickman) in the 34th minute.
The Miners defense fell under heavy pressure again for much of the second half, with Barcom making diving saves and coming out of goal to keep the score at 1-all.
The Miners opportunities in the second were few, with a pair of free kicks from just outside the McKendree goalie box being their best looks at the goal. On the second such opportunity, a ball from
Greycen Erisman (Lee's Summit, MO/Lee's Summit West) hit the crossbar, ricochetted up, then hit the crossbar again to fall into a host of athletes from both teams. After bouncing around between several players,
Nathalie Bello (Hattiesburg, MS/Sacred Heart) was able to chip the ball off a McKendree defender and into the right side of the goal to give the Miners the lead at the 76:09 mark.
The Bearcats pushed hard towards the S&T goal in the final 15 minutes, but the Miners defense held. The Bearcats had one last threatening shot inside the box in the waning seconds of the match, but Barcom snagged her seventh save of the match to prevent the equalizer and give S&T the victory.
As has been the case in previous matches, the Miners were out-shot (5 to 13) in the match, but took higher percentage shots, with all five of the shots being on goal.
What's Next
The Miners will hit the road for the longest trip of the conference season as they visit Lewis and UIndy.
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