LOUISVILLE, Ky. - As the final whistle sounded on a dramatic finish in its ASUN opener, the Central Arkansas women's soccer team drew 1-1 at Bellarmine Thursday night. With multiple opportunities for both sides in the closing minutes, the Bears just couldn't find a second goal to snag a win on the road to open conference play.
Gracie Hair tallied the lone goal of the night for Central Arkansas, her first score of the season. The fifth-year put up five shots, with several terrific opportunities to score in the match.
The opening part of the match was fairly even, with the ball staying mostly in the midfield. With both teams struggling offensively for much of the year, neither side wanted to be the first one to make the critical mistake. Bellarmine nearly earned that distinction, as Sydney Brough and Kelly Van Gundy forced saves from the Knights keeper.
Bellarmine took that near mistake and countered, playing a couple of passes into dangerous territory and converting on its first shot of the game, taking a 1-0 lead. Van Gundy nearly equalized in the 23rd minute, pinging a shot off the crossbar. The Bears stayed aggressive throughout the remainder of the first half, but couldn't find an equalizer. Abby Gibson had multiple shots in the first frame, but the Knights were able to keep her from scoring.
Making halftime adjustments, the Bears came back out looking to stay aggressive in the midfield, maintaining possession to find quality looks for a tying goal. That opportunity came immediately out of the break; forcing a turnover on the attacking side of the midline, Brough passed a ball forward to Hair, who lifted a shot from outside the 18 yard box and lofted it over the outstretched keeper, leveling the match at a goal a side.
The sides battled back and forth in the ensuing minutes, each team looking to take advantage of the moment. Subbed in at the half, Lenja Kenstel stayed cool and calm in between the pipes, recording three saves on the night, keeping the Knights from retaking the lead.
Bellarmine controlled the momentum in the middle of the second half, possessing the ball in the Bears' defensive third for minutes at a time, but the Central Arkansas defense refused to break. Weathering the storm, the Bears were finally able to trek out into the open field in search of the game winner with under 15 minutes remaining. As the clock ticked down, Gibson, Hair and Tristyn Pavatt all had quality looks at goals, but Bellarmine's sixth-year keeper held on by the skin of her teeth, ending the game in a draw.
Central Arkansas will have one more game on the road this weekend, staying in Kentucky for a bout with Eastern Kentucky on Sunday. Kickoff against the Colonels is set for noon.
