Aces women’s soccer ties at Missouri State
The Purple Aces picked up their first point on the road this season
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – The University of Evansville women’s soccer team picked up its second straight point in a 1-1 draw at Missouri State.
The Purple Aces scored their first goal in Springfield since 2014 on Thursday night in their final conference visit to Missouri State. Freshman defender Emmy Brenner (Arlington, Tenn. / St. Benedict at Auburndale HS) scored her second goal of the season to tie the match in the 73rd minute. Thursday’s result was the first for Evansville against Missouri State since 2021.
UE got the jump on Missouri State to start the match with an early corner kick and shot attempt from sophomore midfielder Ella Hamner (Evansville, Ind. / Memorial HS). But the Bears took control of the game’s pace for the rest of the first half. The Aces defense fended off 10 shots from Missouri State over 40 minutes, including two team saves along with goalkeeper Myia Danek.
The pace of the match evened out in the second half as neither team put up more than a shot over the first 15 minutes. But the Bears had the slight advantage with three shots over 10 minutes midway through the half. The pace in Evansville’s defensive end resulted in a Missouri State goal in the 71st minute. The Bears wouldn’t hold the lead for long as UE responded almost immediately.
In the 74th minute the Aces took a corner kick on right side of the pitch. Junior forward Amy Velazquez (Avon, Ind. / Avon HS) took the kick for the set piece and found Brenner just outside the six. Brenner was able to rise up and head the ball into the back of the net for her second goal to equalize the match. The goal was Brenner’s second of the season and Velazquez was credited with her first assist of the year.
Evansville continued to attack Missouri State’s net in the final 15 minutes of play. UE recorded four corner kicks in the final five minutes of the match trying for a second set piece goal to leave Springfield with a win. The Aces put two shots on net during those four corner kicks but weren’t able to get the game-winning goal. But Evansville earned its first result against the Bears since the 2019 season.
UE has a week off before returning to action at home in Evansville. The Aces will welcome the UNI Panthers to Arad McCutchan Stadium on Thursday, October 3rd. Kick-off against the Panthers is set for 6 p.m. from Evansville.
