Box Score NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Belmont women's soccer team opened conference play at home after a road heavy first half of the season, but the Bruins weren't able to overcome a persistent Eastern Kentucky squad at Rose Park Friday evening. BU dropped a 1-0 decision after the Colonels found the back of the net late in the match.
EKU (6-2-0, 1-0) collected the first two shots of the match but Belmont (1-5-3, 0-1) reclaimed possession for a majority of the first frame as they controlled the pace. The Bruins then settled in and kept the Colonels from getting another attempt off for the remainder of the half. While BU's defense was stout, their offense continued to construct attacks for the remainder of the first 45 minutes. The squad ended up outshooting Eastern Kentucky, 8-2, before the halftime buzzer but weren't able to convert on any of the attempts.
"We were attacking and creating some great combinations but our final pass wasn't the product that we wanted," head coach Heather Henson. "They were then able to clear it and then gain possession off of our turnovers to generate their attack."
Junior forward Belicia Mendiola (McKinney, Texas) ignited the shooting efforts in the ninth minute as her and senior midfielder Meg Howard (Brentwood, Tenn.) bounced the ball back and forth creating a beautiful attack. Mendiola struck from eight yards out but got too much power behind the ball as it soared over the goal.
The Bruins continued to put pressure on EKU's stubborn defense as a pair of defenders, junior Tara Austin (Beaumont, Texas) and freshman Niki Clements (Perkasie, Pa.), combined for a couple of back-to-back shots. Austin sent a bullet right to Eastern Kentucky's goalkeeper Anna Hall but was rejected. Clements picked up the rebound but nearly missed wide right.
"Both halves we had some phenomenal opportunities – I think we had four or five in the first," Henson said. "They were a little bit further outside, but they knew we were trying to get inline and try to drive the ball inside."
While Belmont disrupted EKU's offense in the first frame, the Colonels came out of the locker room with newfound energy and struck early and often. Eastern Kentucky claimed the first three shots of the second stanza forcing senior goalkeeper Stephanie Bukovec (Toronto, Ontario, Canada) to face her first contested shots of the evening.
Eastern Kentucky ended up securing the game-winning goal in the 77th minute after the Colonels leading scorer, Jordan Foster, slid a ball past Bukovec.
The Bruins refused to let up with 13 minutes remaining in the match. Mendiola launched her fourth shot of the evening from 30 yards out but once again saw the ball go just over the cross bar. Belmont would go on to outshoot Eastern Kentucky 13-11 but couldn't find the equalizer.
The team will continue conference action on the road at Tennessee Tech Sunday, Sept. 25. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Tech Soccer Field.
Lead photo taken by Belmont junior Jay Burnett.
