BILLINGS, Mont. – Visiting Northwest Nazarene University used a first-half goal from Makayla Roggow to top the Montana State University Billings women's soccer team 1-0 on a windy Thursday afternoon at Yellowjacket Field in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.
The Yellowjackets mounted an urgent comeback effort in the second half, out-shooting the Nighthawks 9-4 over the final 45 minutes. But NNU withstood the storm to break a tie with the Yellowjackets in the middle of the GNAC standings. At the midway point of the conference season, NNU bumped up to third place at 5-3-2 overall and 3-3-1 in league play, while MSUB slid to sixth place at 5-5-2 overall and 2-4-1 in conference matches.
Perhaps MSUB's best chance to equalize came with less than 90 seconds left on the clock, as the hosts won a late corner kick.
Haylee Gunter got an open header attempt from the cross, but her shot rolled inches wide of the left goal post. "This is a very disappointing result from us," said MSUB head coach
Stephen Cavallo. "We had the chances in the game to certainly get something from it, and it's the final execution piece that is the difference between us winning and losing games right now."
NNU goalkeeper Alexis Montoya delivered crucial saves throughout the match as well, earning her fourth shutout of the season. None of her season-high 11 saves were bigger than her 89th-minute denial on an attempt by MSUB's
Hailee Gertsch. The second-year freshman twirled past a pair of defenders at the top of the box, before drilling a low, powerful strike headed for the left corner of the net. Montoya fully extended her right arm, sliding to touch the ball inches wide of the post.
Montoya's other key stop came in the 72nd minute, when MSUB forward
Liberty Palmer gained momentum on the left side of the field and beat her defender into the goal box. The NNU keeper charged forward and closed the angle, before sliding to save Palmer's on-target attempt from point-blank range.
The Nighthawks, who opened the match on the front foot and were the better side over the first 15 minutes of play, were rewarded in the 37th minute after winning a corner kick. Magda Wronski served a curling ball just outside of the six-yard box, which Roggow ran onto and nodded just under the crossbar for her second goal of the season.
Yellowjacket goalkeeper
Clare Keenan had four big saves throughout the match to help keep the Yellowjackets in it for the full 90 minutes. Her first denial came in the 33rd minute, when Sierra Sanchez lifted a promising strike towards the upper part of the goal from outside the box. Keenan leapt up and tapped the ball just over the crossbar with her right fist to keep the match scoreless for the time being.
Keenan's other notable save came in the 76th minute, when reigning GNAC Player of the Week Madison Grande got loose from her defender inside the box on the left side. Keenan adeptly covered her near post, reacting with a diving stop to her right on a close-range strike from Grande that was headed into the back of the net.
Gertsch played an instrumental role in the comeback effort late in the match, pushing forward from her normal center back position and helping the offensive unit create chances over the final 15 minutes of play.
Leila Clark led the Yellowjackets with four shots and two on target, and MSUB out-shot the Nighthawks 16-13 in the game.
McKenzie Buell led the visitors with three attempts, while Chandler Kauffman and Kailyn LaBrosse joined Wronski in playing the full 90 minutes on the back line in front of Montoya.
THE BUZZ: Gertsch was named the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Game…MSUB is now 19-11-2 all-time against NNU and is 12-3 in home matches against the Nighthawks…MSUB has been shut out in each of its five losses this season.
NEXT UP: No. 8 Seattle Pacific University comes to town Saturday, with a 1 p.m. kickoff at Yellowjacket Field. The Falcons won the first meeting between the teams 5-0 on Sept. 23 in Seattle. Live video will be
available online here and live statistics will be
available online here.
