Springfield, Mo. – The Central Arkansas women's soccer team returned to action on the road on Sunday afternoon, traveling to Springfield, Missouri to take on the Missouri State Bears. The purple Bears would earn the points on the day, getting a pair of goals and another strong defensive showing to earn their second 2-0 win of the season.

Missouri State (3-2-0) needed just 59 seconds to threaten, as Brooke Prondzinski fired a shot on target, but Central Arkansas (2-1-1) keeper Lauren Mercuri was able to make the save, leading to a run of UCA possession that saw shots from Camille Bassett and Bria Williams over the next two minutes. It would be Missouri State that would control the ball for the majority of the first half however, with the maroon Bears firing off eight shots from the six-minute mark until 30 minutes in. The Central Arkansas defense was up to the task, limiting MSU to just one shot on frame during that time, with Mercuri proving up to the task to make the save.

Beginning with in the 30^th minutes, the Central Arkansas offense reasserted itself, leading to a pair of offsides calls before a combination from Kristen Ricks and Morgan Rollow fell to Jordan Slim, who held it up before laying it off to Savannah Tidd. Tidd finished it off from five yards out, putting UCA up 1-0 with her first goal of the season.
Missouri State would get a final look at goal in the waning seconds of the half, but Mercuri again made the save.

UCA would need just two minutes in the second half to add to the lead, when a long free kick found Gracie Hair. The Central Arkansas freshman fired towards the back post, and Connie Awuku-Darkoh won a foot race to the ball, touching it around the charging MSU keeper to the right post to extend the UCA lead to 2-0 with her third goal of the year.

The purple Bears would get just one shot off over the final 42 minutes, but would limit their maroon counterparts to just a pair of shots on goal  over the same time frame, both easily handled by Mercuri, to pick up their second clean sheet in as many games.

On the day, Mercuri six saves to pitch her second shutout of the year. MSU would outshoot Central Arkansas on the day, 18-5, but the purple Bears were much more efficient , putting four shots on target to six for MSU. Williams was on target with both of her shots, while Tidd and Awuku-Darkoh each put one attempt on frame.

"It was a great weekend," said UCA head coach Jeremy Bishop after the game. "We got another shutout road win. We did a good job of limiting their scoring chances to mostly long range shots and at the same time we made good on our opportunities. The first goal was a great goal. Ricks started it with a long diagonal pass to Rollow, who patiently held it up and found Slim, who laid it off for Savannah and she tucked it in the back post. The second goal was a long pass on a restart from a foul. Hair got in behind their line  and found Connie, who was able to hold off the defender and touch it by the oncoming keeper."

Central Arkansas will take to the pitch twice next week. The Bears will wrap up their current four-match road trip on Thursday night at Mississippi State at 7:00 PM, before returning home to the Stephens Complex to take on Arkansas-Pine Bluff at 7:00 PM on Sunday night.