Eagles tie 1-1 in defensive battle Sunday

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DEKALB, Ill. – University of Southern Indiana Women’s Soccer played to a 1-1 draw in a tough, competitive match Sunday against the Northern Illinois Huskies to kick off a two-match road swing for the Screaming Eagles.
 
Both squads took some time in the first half to get settled into the flow of the match Sunday. The opening 45 minutes was a defensive battle.
 
Senior forward Taylor Hall (Grayson, Kentucky) took the first shot of the match for USI in the eighth minute, the first of four shots in the first half for Southern Indiana. The Screaming Eagles had two on target, both saved by the Huskies’ freshman goalkeeper Deighton Wamer, who finished with three saves. There were only nine combined shots by both sides in the first half.
 
Shortly after halftime and in the 53rd minute, Hall scored the first goal of the match and her first of the season. The assist was credited to freshman midfielder Peyton Murphy (Bargersville, Indiana), her first helper of the season. The Screaming Eagles gained possession near midfield, played the ball up the far side of the field across from the benches, and went on a 2-on-1 break. Murphy entered the box and slotted a pass across the six-yard area, where Hall connected on the backend of the pass and tapped it in the goal.
 
Northern Illinois quickly answered with a goal of their own in the next minute. Junior midfielder Claudia Muessig scored her first of the season for the Huskies. The play started with a near-side cross toward the far post side, where she headed the ball back across the face of the goal and in the near-side netting.
 
Both sides looked to find a go-ahead goal in the latter portion of the second half, but quality looks were at a premium for the rest of the match.
 
Southern Indiana took a total of nine shots, placing four on goal. Northern Illinois had 11 shots but only three on target.
 
Individually, Hall and junior forward Morgan Beyer (Rossford, Ohio) led USI with two shots. USI’s four shots on goal came from four different players. Senior goalkeeper Maya Etienne (Midland, Michigan) made two saves Sunday.
 
The Screaming Eagles will conclude the two-match road swing at 7 p.m. Thursday against the North Alabama Lions from Florence, Alabama. Live video coverage will be available with an ESPN+ subscription.
 

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