LARAMIE, Wyo. (Sept. 15, 2019) – The Wyoming women’s soccer team (3-1-3 overall) battled Montana (0-3-3) to a 1-1 draw on Sunday afternoon in Missoula.

 

Wyoming tried to take advantage early with opportunities by senior Michaela Stark with two shots that missed the goal. Montana responded with four shots that didn’t reach the back of the net with saves from sophomore goalie Hannah Lee. It would be a back and forth first half as it would be a 0-0 score headed in to the lockerroom after the first 45 minutes. UW had two shots compared to five by the Grizzlies and one corner kick against Montana’s four.

 

In the second half, the Grizzlies capitalized just four minutes in to gain the upper hand. Off a corner kick by Caitlin Rodgers with 48:29 on the clock, Kendall Furrow pushed the ball past Lee to make it a 1-0 lead in favor of Montana. The Cowgirls had chances from redshirt freshman Jamie Tatum and Stark in the 50^th and 55^th minutes which came up empty. The defense really clamped down on both sides until the final ten minutes of regulation. The Cowgirls had three opportunities which came up short. With time winding down, a yellow card was committed by Allie Larsen which warranted a penalty kick. Sophomore Savannah Warner struck the ball past goalie Claire Howard in the 90^th minute to force overtime.

 

In the first ten minutes, Montana had chances in the 98^th and 99^th minutes but neither was successful. Stark had a look with 96:28 on the clock which came up empty. The Cowgirls seemed to be the aggressor to being with shots from Stark, fellow senior Summer Taube and freshman Tori Parker that didn’t net any results in the second ten minutes. Taylor Stoeger had an opportunity at the 108:14 mark which was saved by Lee. The game with end in a 1-1 tie after 110 minutes of play.

 

“It was a hard fought match from our team,” head coach Pete Cuadrado said. “I was proud of the grit with the level of physicality Montana presented. Kuddos to our team, I felt like we had chances in the second half to score a goal. We kept fighting until the end and got one late with time winding down. It showed that we kept battling as a team has and we can use moving forward. Even in overtime, I thought we created some good opportunities.”

 

Stark finished the contest with a game-high six shots with one on goal. Warner had two shots while a handful of Cowgirls had one. Lee played all 110 minutes in goal along with Warner, junior Elle Webber and freshman Keelie Wortmann. Wyoming outshot the Grizzlies 12-10 while the two teams combined for 26 total fouls.

 

Wyoming will to the pitch on Thursday against South Dakota. The Cowgirls are set to host the Coyotes in an outreach event at Thunder Basin High School in Gillette. The match is scheduled for 7 p.m. MT.