The Upper Iowa University women's soccer team fell in a heartbreaker on Senior Day as Wayne State clinched a 1-0 win in overtime. The Peacocks fall to 7-9 (5-9 NSIC) on the year while the Wildcats improve to 6-7-4 (6-5-3 NSIC).
The Wildcats put a shot on goal at the 2:29 mark that
Natalie Rudrud was able to save, and the Peacocks turned away Wayne State twice in the fifth minute as the UIU defense thwarted a shot and a corner kick.
One of Upper Iowa's best offensive looks of the match came off of a corner kick in the ninth minute as
Leah Willenbring played a perfect ball into the box that found the feet of both
Toni Powsey and
Katie Samuels. Powsey put a low shot on goal that was saved by the WSC keeper, but Samuels was whistled for a foul just before putting in the shot after the rebound. The controversial call left the Peacocks empty-handed, and UIU was unable to convert on its next attempt at a corner kick in the 13th minute.
The Peacocks earned two more corner kicks in the first half and saw a shot on goal from
Samantha Maudsley get saved by WSC, but Upper Iowa was unable to convert despite looking decisively more in control through the first 45 minutes. The UIU defense added to a strong offense as Wayne State only took one more shot in the first half after their early looks in the first five minutes.
In the second half,
Haley Ramberg took the first two shot attempts before Powsey put a shot on goal at the 56:48 mark. Ramberg was able to break free and get deep into Wildcat territory on several more occasions, but a couple of her best looks resulted in a WSC save in the 68th minute and a shot that sailed wide in the 77th minute. The second half ended with a frenetic push from Wayne State as they earned two corner kicks and took two shots in the final 2:31 of regulation. Rudrud made a save on the first shot, and the Peacock defense held firm against the attacks as the score remained tied through 90 minutes of play.
In overtime, Upper Iowa opened the action by earning a corner kick in the 93rd minute. The Peacocks were unable to set up a set piece score and had a shot from
Katrina Kazluski soar high, and the look would prove to by UIU's last one of the match. The Peacocks shut down a WSC corner in the 95th minute and forced an off-target shot from a Wildcat in the 96th minute, but Wayne State broke free late in the 97th minute and scored the golden goal at the 96:44 mark to claim a 1-0 win.
PEACOCKS OF THE GAME...
STATS OF THE GAME...
- The Peacocks finished the match with a 14-10 shot advantage, but each team finished with five shots on goal.
- UIU earned a 4-1 advantage in corner kicks in the first half, but WSC held a 5-0 advantage over UIU in second-half corner kicks. Each team earned a corner kick in OT.
SENIOR DAY... Upper Iowa honored a quartet of seniors ahead of Sunday's match.
Kaitlyn Adamov,
Aimee Sies,
Credence White, and
Natalie Rudrud will be concluding their Peacock careers at the end of the season.
UP NEXT... The Peacocks will conclude their regular season with a matchup against Winona State University in Fayette on Friday, Nov. 5 at 2 p.m.
