Women's Soccer Jami Sponaugle

Women’s Soccer Defeats Murray State in Penalties, Advances to MVC Championship

Flames defeat Racers 4-3 in MVC semifinals, advance to hampionship match

Murray, Ky. – The UIC women's soccer team is Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Championship-bound for the first time in program history and will be playing in their second-ever conference tournament title match (2019 Horizon League), after defeating the Murray State Racers in a penalty shootout. Reaching the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Championship semifinal for the third straight season, the sixth-seeded Flames (9-7-4, 3-3-3 MVC) took on the second-seeded Racers (10-5-4, 5-1-3 MVC). Scoring a penalty kick goal in the final four minutes of regulation, the Flames forced overtime play against the Racers. At the conclusion of two 10-minute overtime periods, the teams went into a penalty kick shootout to determine who would advance to the finals. The Flames would come out on top, defeating the Racers 4-3 to advance to the MVC championship.
 
Underway in the semifinal match, the Flames and Racers went to battle. The Flames picked up the first shot of the match when Sophia Jaime placed a shot into the bottom center of the goal, but the Racers' goalkeeper came up with a save in the 9th minute. Through 30 minutes of action, the Flames outshot the Racers 3-2, but it would be the Racers who found the back of the net first, scoring in the 31st minute to take a 1-0 lead. For the remainder of the half, both teams continued to take their chances, but were unable to convert. At the halftime whistle, the Flames trailed the Racers 1-0. 
 
With everything on the line, the Flames battled with the Racers until the final second. Although the Racers outshot the Flames 11-7 in the second half, momentum would shift in favor of UIC. With time ticking down, the Flames were awarded a penalty kick in the 86th minute. Kaysey Castro would step up and take the kick for UIC. Castro would place a right-footed shot into the lower left corner of the net, opposite the Racers' goalkeepers' dive, and tied the game 1-1. At the final whistle, the Flames and Racers were tied and headed into overtime. 
 
With free soccer underway, the teams entered two 10-minute overtime periods. Between the two periods, the Racers outshot the Flames 6-3, with five coming in the second period. With two shots on frame, Sara Sanabria came up with saves to keep the game going. After 110 minutes of action, neither side was able to find the winning goal, forcing a penalty kick shootout. 
 
In the shootout, Hannah Gryzik, Camryn Ries, Sophia Jaime, and Katelyn Nardulli all converted their shots, with Nardulli scoring the winning goal. In goal, Sara Sanabria recorded two saves, helping lead the Flames to victory. 

The full box score and play-by-play recap can be found here.
 

SOCIAL MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS



UP NEXT
With the win, the Flames are heading to the MVC Championship match. They will travel to Normal, Ill., to take on the No. 4 Illinois State Redbirds. The game will kick off at 1:00 p.m. at Adelaide Street Field. 
 
FOLLOW THE FLAMES
For more information on Flames soccer, fans are encouraged to visit UICFlames.com or follow the Flames on social media through X (@UIC_WSOC and @UICFlames) and on Instagram (@uic_wsoc and @uicflames) 
 
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