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HomeSportsAustin Peay Lady Govs Soccer loses to UT Martin Skyhawks 2-1

Austin Peay Lady Govs Soccer loses to UT Martin Skyhawks 2-1

APSU Sports: Austin Peay Soccer

Austin Peay State University Lady GovsMartin, TN – Austin Peay State University women’s soccer team battled defending Ohio Valley Conference Tournament champion UT Martin but fell 2-1 to the Skyhawks, Friday, at Skyhawk Field

“The game was very back and forth,” said Austin Peay head coach Kelley Guth. “UT Martin has some very dangerous players on offense, and so do we. There were a lot of chances out there for both teams.”

Austin Peay Women's Soccer. (Courtesy: Brittney Sparn/APSU Sports Information)
Austin Peay Women’s Soccer. (Courtesy: Brittney Sparn/APSU Sports Information)

The opening half was tightly contested, with both squads getting multiple chances on the net. Austin Peay (4-7-0, 0-2 OVC) forced UT Martin (4-4-3, 1-0-1 OVC) keeper Mariah Klenke to make four first-half saves, while Haylee Shoaff made three saves for the Lady Govs in the opening half.

Four different Lady Govs (Emily Kink, Emily Perkins, Joceline Quiceno and Morgan Zigelsky) put shots on net for Austin Peay in the first half.

UT Martin’s best chance came late in the first half. An Abi Sanvee shot got by Shoaff but hit the left post, keeping the game scoreless going into halftime.

The Skyhawks broke through early in the second half when Alyssa Curtis headed in a Hannah McGowen cross in the 56th minute.

Austin Peay would answer just two minutes later. Off a deflected save, Ariza became the Lady Govs all-time leader in goals scored, poking the ball past Klenke for her 31st career goal, which passed Ashley Beck (2005-08) for most all-time.

The Skyhawks netted the game-winner with less than seven minutes left in the match. Curtis collected a Shoaff save and found Saphyr Coombs-James about five yards out from the net for the goal.

“We did a good job rebounding and scoring quickly after UT Martin’s first goal,” Guth said. “The second goal seemed to take the wind out of our sails a bit.”

Shoaff made six saves in the loss, while Klenke saved seven shots between the posts for UT Martin. Shoaff passed Michelle Smith (2006-08) for third all-time in Austin Peay history with 127 career saves.

“I feel like our team is right there,” Guth said. “Martin had a bit more momentum in the second half and we have to learn to handle those kinds of tempo changes better. We didn’t play our game well enough and got caught up playing their kind of game a little bit.”

The Lady Govs will regroup with another OVC match-up on tap. Austin Peay travels to Cape Girardeau, MO for a 2:00pm, Sunday, match-up against Southeast Missouri.

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