Bowling Green, KY – Austin Peay State University (APSU) women’s soccer goalkeeper Peyton Powell made six saves, but the Governors were unable to overcome a pair of second-half goals and dropped a 2-0 season-opening decision to Western Kentucky, Thursday, at the WKU Soccer Complex.
In the first match of the 20th season of Austin Peay State University (0-1-0) soccer, Powell made five saves in the first half to help keep the match tied, 0-0, after 45 minutes.
The final of Powell’s first-half saves came in the 35th minute when she stopped a Lyric Schmidt penalty shot to keep Western Kentucky (1-0-0) off the scoreboard.
The Governors also took a pair of shots in the first half, but neither was on target, with freshman Alec Baumgardt missing wide left in the 19th minute and fifth-year senior Claire Larose missing wide right in the 38th minute.
The Lady Hilltoppers broke through in the second half with goals from Katie Erwin and Annah Hopkins in the 51st and 55th minutes, respectively. After the pair of Western Kentucky goals, the Govs blocked three Lady Hilltopper shots before Powell made her sixth and final save of the night in the 83rd minute.
Freshmen Lindsey McMahon and Clara Heistermann led the Governors in minutes played, going the distance in their collegiate debuts – Powell also played all 90 minutes in net.
APSU Naomi Coach Kolarova Quotably
Opening thoughts… “Tonight was a tough defensive battle against a team that won the C-USA East regular-season championship last season. They were very good and we knew we would have to play smart defense in our own half to stave them off and we knew they would be hard to break down going forward.”
On the Govs defensive effort… “Senior goalkeeper Peyton Powell played a great game, saving a penalty kick to keep us tied at the half. Freshmen defenders Lindsey McMahon and Clara Heistermann both had clearances off the goal line that helped keep us in it as well.”
Final thoughts… “It was an enormous defensive effort as a team, and it was exhausting. It’s game one though. We are young and we are still working on things, but we have a great attitude towards working g hard for 90 minutes. WE have a tough schedule ahead of us and these types of games are going to be our bread and butter for a few weeks, so we have to hang in there and keep grafting.”
Box Score
Austin Peay 0, Western Kentucky 2
| 1 | 2 | F | |
| Austin Peay | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Western Kentucky | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Next Up for APSU Soccer
The Austin Peay State University women’s soccer team makes the quick trip to Nashville for a 1:00pm, Sunday contest against Lipscomb. The APSU Govs then play their home opener when they welcome Kansas State for a 7:00pm, August 27th match at Morgan Brothers Soccer Field. For news and updates on everything Governors soccer, follow along on Twitter or Instagram (@GovsWSOC) or check back at LetsGoPeay.com.
