Box Score EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. -- Despite strong play in the first half, the Belmont women's soccer team (2-9-1, 1-3 OVC) was unable to topple defending OVC champion SIUE (4-6-3, 1-2-1 OVC) on Sunday afternoon. The Bruins were edged 1-0, falling to 1-3 in conference play.
A heavy back and forth battle marked both halves of the dual. The Cougars were able to jump on the scoreboard in the 35th minute and struggled to hold on to the lead for the remainder of the contest. BU battled hard down the stretch and had several near misses in the waning minutes but was unable to find the equalizer goal.
"We had another goal called back today but the ladies came out to play," said Head Coach Heather Henson. "We out shot them in the first half and really controlled all but 10-15 minutes of it.
"In the second half, SIUE got more shots than the first half but we still looked to build our attack and press them defensively. Some days you work so hard and it just doesn't fall your way. This was one of those days."
SIUE held the narrow advantage in shots, 15-10, but the Bruins held the advantage in corner kicks, 3-2.
Sophomore Belicia Mendiola (McKinney, Texas) led BU with three shots, followed by freshman Emily Whitcomb (Elmhurst, Ill.) with a pair.
Junior Stephanie Bukovec (Toronto, Ontario, Canada) finished the day with nine saves.
Belmont returns to action Friday, October 9 at E.S. Rose Park. The Bruins host Murray State for a match set to kickoff at 4 p.m.
