BILLINGS, Mont. – Goalkeeper Clare Keenan had the biggest contribution of her young Montana State University Billings women's soccer career on Saturday afternoon at Yellowjacket Field, making nine important saves to lead the hosts to a 2-1 victory over Great Northwest Athletic Conference opponent Central Washington University.
 
Keenan's denials, combined with goals from Liberty Palmer and Jordan Roe, were enough to lead the Yellowjackets to their first conference victory of the season. "She is unreal, and I don't know what we would do without her," Roe commented on Keenan. "She is superhuman. She had the best performance and we definitely would not have won without her out there."
 
The Yellowjackets (4-2-1, 1-1 GNAC) bounced back from Thursday's loss at Seattle Pacific University, and improved upon their perfect home record this fall moving to 3-0 in matches played at Yellowjacket Field. Central Washington meanwhile fell to 1-5 on the season and is now 0-2 at the outset of conference play. "We are really happy to get a win today," said MSUB head coach Stephen Cavallo. "For large portions of this game we played great. We had moments where we switched off and that was where Central was dangerous and created those chances. We just need to be more consistent as we move into next week."
 
Sophia Keenan scored her first goal of the season in the 82nd minute to give the Wildcats hope, but Keenan was at her best in the closing minutes of the match. Perhaps Keenan's most impressive stop of the match was her last one in the 84th minute, when CWU forward Makinzie Packwood created space at the top of the box and let loose a high, left-footed shot headed for the back of the net. Keenan timed a leaping punch perfectly, tipping the strike off the cross bar and then quickly smothering a rebound attempt.
 
"I don't know how she made some of the saves that she made today," Cavallo commented on the second-year keeper. "She is so athletic and is such a great shot stopper, and we saw her flying through the air making saves today. We are really grateful to her for giving us a top performance. I was disappointed we couldn't get her a shutout because I felt like she earned it."
 
Palmer's team-leading third goal of the season came in the 17th minute, on a play that originated on a free kick in the Yellowjackets' half of the field. Hailee Gertsch swung the ball across the field, and it wound up on the foot of Leila Clark who blew past a defender down the right wing. The freshman rolled a promising cross towards the six-yard box, and Palmer cleverly won positioning around her defender and nudged a crafty, left-footed shot past CWU goalkeeper Liz Canton and into the back of the net.
 
It wasn't just the quantity of stops, but the timing of Keenan's denials that helped keep momentum and belief on the side of the Yellowjackets. The Wildcats' Keenan nearly evened the score with less than a minute to play in the opening half, blasting a right-footed shot on frame that was headed for the upper corner of the net. Keenan guarded her near post well however, rising up to punch the powerful attempt out of danger.
 
The Wildcats nearly equalized just moments after the second-half kickoff, when Packwood swiped the ball off a defender and immediately created a one-on-one with Keenan. The 'Jacket keeper calmly stood her ground, closed the angle, and knocked away the low shot attempt with her leg.
 
Maddie Smith, who turned 19 on Saturday, ripped her closest shot attempt of the day off the crossbar 30 seconds after Keenan's save, as both teams hinted a wild second half was about to unfold. Palmer followed with a pair of close-range shots that were on target, but the CWU back line was there to save the day on both occasions.
 
Another stellar denial from Keenan came 10 minutes into the second half, when Packwood got loose on the right side of the box and had a clear, long-range look towards goal. Keenan leapt up as the rising strike carried over her head, and extended her arm far enough to knock down a ball that would have wound up in the back of the net.


 
Four Yellowjacket substitutes, including Roe, checked into the match in the 80th minute after the team won a corner kick. Smith delivered a high-arcing cross towards the back post, and Roe was there to blast home a header finish to give MSUB breathing room with 10 minutes left in the match. "Maddie gave me a beautiful ball and I was there, and I was just able to get my head on it," Roe commented on the late game-winner. "It's super exciting to see how much we can make happen up there, and we just need to focus on our final ball and getting more goals. We are just seeing a high number of people who are able to score this year, and our defense has been really solid. Collectively as a team we are just playing much better together."
 
The game was far from over however, as the Wildcats responded two minutes later to get on the scoreboard. Emily Darcy carried the ball into the right corner, and Keenan was there to touch home a well-timed cross from inside the six-yard box to make the score 2-1.
 
The 'Jackets held tough over the final eight minutes, and aside from Keenan's final top-notch save they limited the Wildcats without another threat. "It's super exciting," Roe commented on the first GNAC win of her career. "It is nice to know now the amount of effort you have to put in to get those wins in the GNAC. It's nice to see that we can stick with these teams and play with them."
 
The Wildcats wound up out-shooting the 'Jackets 12-10 over the final 45 minutes of play, with the teams standing even at 17 shots apiece during the match. Canton had seven saves for the visitors while Keenan led the team with six shots including three on target.
 
"Our character is going to get tested throughout the entire season, and the GNAC is a very difficult conference," Cavallo said citing Thursday's 5-0 defeat at No. 23 Seattle Pacific University. "The game against SPU we know wasn't our best, but I am really impressed with and proud of the team for responding today. We knew a home win was an absolute must, and the team stepped up and did it."
 
THE BUZZ: Keenan was named the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Game…Palmer led all players with a season-high seven shots including five on target…the game-winning goal was Roe's first of the year and the third of her career…Clark's assist was the first of her career…Smith's assist was her second of the season…MSUB is now 13-16-1 all-time against CWU and is 9-7 in home matches against the 'Cats.
 
AHEAD: The Yellowjackets hit the road next week for two more conference contests. MSUB squares off against Saint Martin's University next Thursday at 1 p.m. Pacific/2 p.m. Mountain, before an 11 a.m. Pacific/noon Mountain kickoff against Western Oregon University next Saturday. Live coverage for next week's matches will be available online here.