Bruins Drop Road Match at Valparaiso

VALPARAISO, Ind. – Despite a commanding offensive push and multiple late chances, Belmont women's soccer fell 1–0 to Valparaiso on Thursday afternoon at Brown Field. The Bruins outshot the Beacons 15–11 and held a 10–6 edge in shots on goal, but a stellar goalkeeping performance in the final minutes denied Belmont an equalizer.

Valparaiso's Molly O'Rear scored the lone goal of the match in the 12th minute off an assist from Martha Goddard, giving the home side an early 1–0 lead. From there, the Bruins controlled possession and created sustained pressure, earning eight corner kicks and firing nine shots in the second half.

Graduate goalkeeper Sydney Jones kept Belmont within striking distance, finishing with five saves — including several key stops in the opening period to keep the deficit at one.

The final five minutes saw relentless Belmont pressure, highlighted by three consecutive shots from Kaitlyn Elliott that were all turned away by Valparaiso keeper Kate Sheridan. Sheridan's late heroics, which included a diving save in the 88th minute and back-to-back stops on corner-kick sequences, secured the Beacons' narrow victory.

Offensively, Kennedy Wise led the Bruins with four shots, while Anay Garcia and Elliott each registered multiple shots on goal. Belmont's defensive line, anchored by Lillie Tabor and Megan Miller, limited Valparaiso to just two shots in the second half.

With the result, Belmont moves to 3-5-7 overall (1-3-3 MVC), while Valparaiso improves to 4-7-4 (1-3-3 MVC).

Up Next 

• The stakes are high in Belmont's final road match of the season against University of Illinois-Chicago on Sunday, October 26 at 1:00 p.m.

Follow Belmont women's soccer on social media - @BelmontWSoccer on Twitter, @belmontwsoccer on Instagram and @belmontWsoccer on Facebook - for complete coverage of the Bruins. Stay up to date with all of Belmont's athletic programs via the official app of the Belmont Bruins, available both in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.