October 31, 2018- Emporia State Soccer won 2-1 over Northeastern State on Wednesday to advance to the MIAA Tournament semi final. The Hornets advance to the MIAA semi final match for just the second time in program history and the first time since 2013.
The Hornets got on the board first in the 12:08 into the match when Kennedy Hoffman scored on an assist from a corner kick by Maria Walden with a header deflection from Tanna Benefiel. In the 26th minute, Northeastern State tied the match at 1-1 when Paulina Chavez scored on an assist from Mariah Nicolet. The Hornets would cap the scoring in the first half with just 2:36 left on the clock when Olivia Miller sent a corner kick into the box and Gaby Crowell drove the ball into the net. The Hornets took a 2-1 lead into the half.
Crowell's late first half goal would prove to be the game winner as the two teams played even in the second half. Ten shots were taken in the second half with no goals as the Hornets defense held on to the one goal lead. The Hornets outshot the RiverHawks 6-4 in the period and 14-6 overall with a 6-3 advantage on goal.
Kennedy Hoffman and Gaby Crowell score one goal each for the Hornets while Maria Walden, Tanna Benefiel and Olivia Miller recorded assists in the match. Rachel Marshall, Aislinn Hughes and Benefiel led the Hornets in shots with two each.
The Hornets will be back in action on Friday, November 2 as they take on #2 seed Central Missouri in the MIAA Tournament semi-final match. The location of the match will be determined by tonights first round match between #1 seed Central Oklahoma and #8 seed Washburn.
Notes: In 2013, the Hornets defeated Northeastern State 3-0 to advance to the MIAA semi-final match. In the win, current senior midfielder Maria Walden's sister Mallory scored a goal for the Hornets. The Hornets assistant coach, McKenzie Koch also score one goal and had one assist in the match against the RiverHawks.
