ELLENSBURG, Wash. – A heroic effort by Clare Keenan in goal and two finishes in the blink of an eye told the story on Saturday afternoon at Tomlinson Stadium, as visiting Montana State University Billings claimed its first win of the year with a 2-0 triumph over host Central Washington University in Great Northwest Athletic Conference women's soccer action.
 
Keenan, who was stellar through the full 90 minutes on Saturday, saved her best for last as she continually denied the Wildcats during their late push in the final 20 minutes of play. "I told Clare after the game that there are clean sheets you get, and clean sheets you earn," said MSUB head coach Stephen Cavallo. "This was a well-earned clean sheet from her. She made some fantastic reflex saves, especially in the second half as they started to push numbers forward. Her leadership and composure today was fantastic."
 
Jackie Sharpe scored her second goal of the year and Jillian Hust netted her first in an MSUB uniform – both of which came in the span of 60 seconds in the opening five minutes of the second half. "Before the game we talked about the big five moments that occur in a game, and in Thursday's game we were on the negative end of that," Cavallo said referencing a pair of quickly conceded goals in Thursday's 3-0 loss to Seattle Pacific University. "For the team to come out, win a corner, and score off the corner was great to give us the advantage. Then the gamble paid off on the second goal; we stole the ball, and we were up 2-0 in a flash."
 
The Yellowjackets improved their record to 1-4-2 with the victory, and pulled even in conference play at 1-1 after the first weekend of the GNAC season. The Wildcats meanwhile fell to 1-4-1 overall and are now 0-2 in GNAC play. "I am very proud of the team, and this was truly a gutsy performance from our group," said Cavallo. "We had the goal in mind to improve defending, and for 3 of 4 halves this weekend we kept a clean sheet. This is a massive road win for us, and everybody on the team is incredibly happy. I am proud of everyone who contributed to this win."
 
The Wildcats maintained early pressure, winning three consecutive corner kicks 15 minutes into the match. The Yellowjackets held their ground defensively, and did not allow a serious threat on goal.
 
Keenan handled a strong shot by Jordan Bartlow at the 19-minute mark, smothering the attempt from 12 yards out as the Wildcats continued to threaten. Although a shot by Cassidie Andrews with eight minutes before halftime didn't carry much power, Keenan made an important smothering stop to prevent a looming CWU attacker from a clean look at a follow-up strike.
 
The Yellowjackets won their only corner kick of the game three minutes into the second half, and used the set piece to pull ahead 1-0. Kendall McGraw delivered a high, arcing cross to the far post, where Sharpe freed herself up enough to tap a close-range shot inside the right goal post.
 
MSUB capitalized on a defensive miscue by CWU moments later, as a press forward by Taylor Gertsch created an errant pass in the Wildcats' defensive third. Hust was there to pick up the ball in stride, before calmly tucking a shot past CWU goalkeeper Kassandra Jaggard to make the score 2-0.
 
The Wildcats came inches away from scoring midway through the second half, when Payton Lindell got free inside the goal box on the left side. With Keenan charging at her, the forward's left-footed strike hit the left goal post and rolled over the line harmlessly.
 
Keenan made another big stop with 20 minutes to go, denying Kayla Gout who landed a strike on frame from the top of the box. Perhaps her most impressive stop came with 13 minutes to go, when she reached up with her left arm at her near post to deflect another powerful shot by Gout that was headed for the upper corner of the goal.
 
CWU kept the pressure on into the final 10 minutes, with a long blast off the foot of Jaxyn Farmen rattling off the crossbar. Keenan and the back line held tough however, and saw out the clean sheet. Making her first start of the year, Sydney Wate played the full 90 minutes on the back line as did center back Kailey Findlay. Abby Sena and Gertsch each also played the full time for the Yellowjackets, who won despite being out-shot 10-8 in the match.
 
"We are looking forward to getting home for two matches this week, and getting the full roster together," Cavallo said. "This week is really big for us, and we want to continue to bring consistent performances to training as we prepare for Saint Martin's on Thursday."
 
THE BUZZ: Keenan was picked as the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Game…the shutout was the second of her career…McGraw's assist was the first of her MSUB career…MSUB is now 14-17-1 all-time against CWU and holds a 5-10-1 record in road matches against the Wildcats…it was MSUB's first victory in Ellensburg since a 2-1 triumph on Oct. 11, 2014, as it snapped a four-game road losing streak in the series.
 
NEXT WEEK: MSUB returns to Yellowjacket Field to host Saint Martin's University next Thursday and No. 19 Western Oregon University next Saturday as conference play continues. Live coverage for next week's games can be found online here.