GRAND FORKS, N.D. – University of Southern Indiana Women’s Soccer opened their NCAA Division I era and their 2022 regular season at the North Dakota Fighting Hawks Thursday. Despite outshooting North Dakota in the match, Southern Indiana came up just shy in a 1-0 loss.
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Kicking off the match early due to bad weather in the forecast in Grand Forks, North Dakota, both teams came out with early looks in the attacking third of the field.
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Each squad put a shot on target within the first handful of minutes, both saved by each respective team’s goalkeeper. The Screaming Eagles’ defense were involved in the attack early, as freshman defender Abby Rhoutsong (Newburgh, Indiana) and graduate senior defender Elizabeth Lippert (Lexington, Kentucky) each put a shot on goal that was saved by North Dakota’s senior goalkeeper Madi Livingston.
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North Dakota scored first in the 26th minute with a diving header by freshman forward Amelia Loeffler off a corner kick assist from sophomore defender Julia Briggs.
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After a relatively quiet start to the second half, USI took three shots within the 63rd minute but could not find a window toward the back of the goal. Another shot later in the second half by senior forward Taylor Hall (Grayson, Kentucky) was saved by Livingston, who finished with five saves on 11 shots faced for North Dakota. USI also had four of their five corner kicks in the second half.
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Overall, Southern Indiana outshot North Dakota 11-7, including a 5-4 advantage in shots on goal.
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Junior midfielder Avery Schone (Galena, Ohio) and senior defender Alyssa Wright (Sellersburg, Indiana) led USI with two shots each. Senior goalkeeper Maya Etienne (Midland, Michigan) made three saves on seven shots faced in net.
Next up, the Screaming Eagles (0-1-0) will travel to Winona, Minnesota to take on the Winona State Warriors (0-0-0) Saturday at 1 p.m. Live video coverage at Winona State can be found online at nsicnetwork.com.
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USI fans can stay up-to-date with the latest at usiscreamingeagles.com.
