MTSU women’s soccer rallied late to snatch a victory away from Florida International University, winning 2-1.
The last time the Raiders and Panthers met, FIU won 2-0 in the 2024 Conference USA playoffs, but with a new head coach and only 13 returning players, Florida International is a much different team.
“We don’t think about the past, I mean, FIU is a different team, different coach, different players,” head coach Aston Rhoden said. “And, you know, we are a different team as well. It didn’t make much sense to go back and talk about what happened when all that really mattered was what should happen today.”
The Panthers wasted no time in opening the scoring of the match, as in the 3rd minute of the game, FIU forward Brealyn Viamille found the back of the net for the first and only goal of the match for FIU.
After Viamille slipped behind the MTSU defensive backline, MTSU goalkeeper Demi Gronauer attempted an aggressive play for the ball outside of the penalty box. However, her contestation was unsuccessful, allowing FIU to score an empty goal.
FIU was unable to extend its lead and generated little offensive pressure following an early surge. The Panthers only notched one more shot for the rest of the first half.
On the other hand, the story of the first half for MTSU was its inability to find any rhythm on offense and capitalize on opportunities to score. The Blue Raiders were only able to take three shots in the entire first half, and several overshot through passes punctuated the Blue Raiders’ offensive woes.
Following FIU’s early advantage, the MTSU defensive line held when called on, including a save from Gronauer, for the remainder of the half. With both teams finding limited opportunities on offense, the score remained at a stalemate at 1-0.
“I think a lot of it is just continuing to believe in who we are and what we do regardless of scoreboard,” Rhoden said. “We talked about that at halftime in terms of just kind of being a little bit more composed with the ball.”
In the second half, MTSU came close to scoring early on, as forward Alli Craig barely missed above the net in the 46th minute, while forward Hannah Murphy and midfielder Ximena Jauregui both came up short in the 50th minute.
A minute later, forward Emma Pettersen had another look at goal but missed off the left woodwork, and the Blue Raiders remained scoreless despite an early onslaught of shots.
FIU was unable to counter MTSU’s offensive pressure as the Panthers only took four shots in the second half, but their defensive line played stubbornly and held the Blue Raiders scoreless.
However, with only 10 minutes left in the match, Pettersen took over the match. The Norwegian forward recorded a match-high five shots on the day, but it wasn’t until the 83rd minute of the game where she finally found the back of the net for the first time.
On an assist from freshman forward, Lilah Cornell, Petterson drew opposing goalkeeper Valery Restrepo out of the goal box and sidestepped Restrepo to score the equalizing goal for the Blue Raiders.
“I knew from scouting the goalie; she comes far out of the goal,” Pettersen said. “So, my goal was to try and use that and take a touch past her and then just go for it.”
Shortly after MTSU evened the score, Pettersen caught fire for a second time and scored in the 88th minute to secure the lead for the Blue Raiders. This time, it was forwards Idun Kvaale and Murphy who set up Pettersen on a pass to score her second goal.
Despite multiple missed opportunities to score early on, the Blue Raiders surged just in time to secure their second consecutive victory and bolster its Conference USA resume.
“We made a few tactical changes as well, you know,” Rhoden said. “We kept fighting and we kept being optimistic that we could win the game. I think that’s what paid off today.”
MTSU competes at home again on Thursday, Oct. 16 at 7 p.m., against the New Mexico State Aggies.
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