ATHENS, Ohio — The Eastern Kentucky University soccer team fell in overtime to host Ohio, 2-1, in the Colonels’ season opener at Chessa Field on Thursday.
EKU (0-1) produced a handful of dangerous opportunities in the first half, but neither team converted over the first 45 minutes.
Less than 10 minutes into the second half, Ohio (1-0) broke the scoreless draw when Sydney Leckle took a pass from Alivia Milesky and made it 1-0, Bobcats.
The Colonels did not fold. In fact, Eastern dominated the rest of the second half, outshooting Ohio 7-3 and attempting three corner kicks to the Bobcats’ none over the final 45 minutes.
That offensive pressure finally paid off when senior Marian Wolski found junior Kylie Thompson on a run, and Thompson buried her opportunity to tie it up.
The draw held through 90 minutes; however, five minutes into overtime, Abby Townsend scored the golden goal off another assist from Milesky to give the Bobcats the victory.
“Ohio is a quality side with loads of speed and ability all over the field,” head coach Matt Cosinuke said. “They challenged us in wide spaces early in the game. I think once we figured out how to solve those problems we were able to grab some momentum and create dangerous moments.”
Ohio narrowly outshot EKU, 12-11, on the day. Thompson paced the Colonels with four shots, three of which were on frame. Freshman Audrey Anderson attempted two shots, one on goal.
All 21 active Colonels saw the field in the game.
Sophomore goalkeeper Zoe Aguirre made eight saves on the day.
“I think we grew today,” Cosinuke added. “We embraced the battle and were in a position to win a few times because of it. This is going to be a process of growth through the whole season. We’ll work through video and recover for Sunday.”
EKU returns home to host Chattanooga on Sunday, August 25, at 1 p.m.
