Women’s Soccer Ties Evansville, 1-1

SPRINGFIELD – The Missouri State women’s soccer team tied Evansville, 1-1, in it’s first home conference game of the 2024 season on Thursday.
 
Julia Kristensen put the Bears (4-4-3, 2-0-1 MVC) on the board in the 70^th minute with an unassisted goal. The senior was within the penalty arc when she sent the ball flying past Evansville’s Myia Danek. Kristensen leads the Bears in scoring with four this year.
 
Less than three minutes later, Emmy Brenner from Evansville scored the equalizing goal with an assist from Amy Velazquez.
 
Missouri State put on a show offensively. The Bears outshot the Purple Aces (1-4-4, 0-1-2) by a 17-5 margin, with nine shots on-target to Evansville’s four. Forward Grace O’Keefe led the Bears in shooting with five total and three on-goal. Midfielder Kaeli Benedict was right behind her with four shots and two on-goal.
 
Goalkeeper Camielle Day recorded a pair of saves to bring her season total to 42.
 
The Bears remain unbeaten in conference play and share the lead in The Valley standings along with Belmont, Indiana State and UIC.
 
“Tough result when I feel we controlled the game,” head coach Kirk Nelson said. “I am please with us implementing some of the tactics we worked on this season but hoping for more goals moving forward. We will regroup and get ready for another one on Sunday.”
 
The Sycamores will make the trip to Springfield on Sunday for an afternoon match starting at 1:00 p.m. Admission to all Missouri State home games is free during the regular season.