Conway – The Central Arkansas women's soccer team opened it's the home portion of its schedule on Friday night, playing host to in-state opponent Arkansas State at the Bill Stephens Track and Soccer Complex. The Red Wolves grabbed a 2-0 lead, but the Bears were able to rebound, scoring three unanswered goals to secure the 3-2 victory.

Arkansas State (1-2) got on the board first, as Arianna Delli Carpini headed home a cross from Tayler Carter in the 30^th minute.

The Red Wolves added to their lead in the 34^th minute, when Katey Carmichael launched a shot from 35 yards out to beat Central Arkansas keeper Anna Hughes.

"I thought we played a good game," said Central Arkansas head coach Jeremy Bishop after the match. "Their first goal was a good goal, but it was kind of against the run of play, and the way the second happened, can really be deflating. But our girls didn't put their heads down, they didn't pout about it, they just kept fighting. Mistakes happen, and we can live with them as long as we're working hard."

Central Arkansas(1-2)  responded just 16 seconds later, when Kristen Ricks found an unmarked Chele Naudin  in the Arkansas State box. Naudin beat Red Wolf keeper Kelsey Ponder in a one-on-one, slotting a shot just inside the far post for her first goal of the season.
 

The Bears evened the score in the 63^rd minute, when Dayna Mounie corralled a deflection off of a free kick from Ashley Smith. Mounie hammered the ball into the upper right corner for her first goal of the season.

Central Arkansas had a pair of good chances in the late minutes of the match, with Ponder making a diving save on an attempt from Camille Bassett in the 88^th minute, and Naudin heading a shot off the cross bar with just five seconds left.

The Bears looked to have the golden goal just a minute and 20 seconds into the first overtime period, but Smith's shot ricocheted off of the cross bar.

Central Arkansas finally broke through in the 103^rd minute, when a handball in the Arkansas State box, gave Naudin a penalty attempt. The Central Arkansas junior beat Ponder in the upper-right corner, to give the Bears the win.

"Chele did a good job of putting things on frame tonight," said Bishop. "She kind of struggled last weekend, and she wasn't her normal self, and Ashley (Smith) did a really good job, so we made that change tonight. It's great to have people that can come off the bench and be creative and it's great that we can be effective with both of them."

The Bears return to action on Sunday afternoon, playing host to Louisiana-Monroe. Kickoff is set for 1:00 PM. "Sunday will be a fight," said Bishop of the Bears' matchup with the Warhawks. "We're going to have to be ready to play all the way. The last couple of years, it's been a very competitive match, so I have no doubt that it'll be another one of that type of match."