SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — In the annual battle of the Bears, Central Arkansas came up just short once again as they dropped their second in a row to Missouri State – losing 2-1 in the Missouri Valley Conference opener for both teams.

After a 0-0 tie between the teams in 2009, Missouri State escaped Conway with a 1-0 win last season after scoring in the 110th minute.

This time around, MSU (3-5-2, 1-0-0 MVC) assumed the lead a little earlier, going up 1-0 in the 35th minute on a goal from preseason All-MVC selection Heath Melugin. Their lead doubled in the 76th minute when Sean Wilkins put in his first goal of the season.

UCA (1-6-2, 0-1-0) got back in the mix late in the game, cutting MSU's lead to 2-1 in the 86th minute when freshman Elia Louis played a free kick to junior Ethan Miller for his first goal of the season, despite all 11 MSU players being in the net.

UCA was unable to draw even, getting just one more shot attempt – a header from Daylon Schiffel in the 87th minute that missed high.

Missouri State held a 17-7 shots advantage for the game, putting seven on goal to just one for UCA. UCA goalkeeper Patxi Shortsleeve tied a season high with five saves, equaling his mark from last month's meeting with Cincinnati.

UCA will continue MVC play on Wednesday when they travel to Edwardsville, Ill. to take on SIUE. Game time is set for 7 p.m.