The Pioneers came back from being 2 goals down on Saturday afternoon to tie with Central Methodist University. The CMU Eagles came out strong against a flat MNU side and earned two goals in the first 10 minutes of the game. Towards the end of the first half, MNU looked to apply pressure on the CMU backline and get themselves back in the game, and the Pioneers' hard work would pay off just 5 minutes before the halftime whistle. Forward
Taryn McClendon found the feet of
Hannah Benedict behind the CMU backline. Benedict touched the ball past the goalkeeper and placed the ball into the back of the net, making the score line 2-1 going into half.
The Pioneers came out strong once again in the second half, looking to even the score. MNU pressed very high up the field the entire half and finally earned the equalizer with 6 minutes left in regulation. Defender
Kelli Reid placed the ball into the box and found the feet of midfielder
Steffi Krohn who shot the ball into the upper corner of the CMU goal, tying the game at 2.
MNU would go on to look for the game winner in regulation, creating several great opportunities, but the game would head into overtime. In overtime, both sides created great chances to steal the game. MNU had several great opportunities inside the box, but were unable to find the decisive game winner. The game would end at 2-2, leaving the Pioneer's in 3rd place in conference.
On the day, MNU outshot the Eagles 19-6, 11 on target compared to CMU's 4. Goalkeeper
Anesa Curic recorded 2 saves in the tie. With their third place finish, MNU will host 6-seed and #18 Missouri Valley in the opening round of the Heart of America Postseason tournament on Saturday.
