By Dylan Vazzano, TTU Sports Information Coordinator
MOREHEAD, Ky. – Right in the thick of things late into the second half, the Tennessee Tech soccer team's chance at an upset against the defending conference tournament champions went by the books, as Morehead State used a pair of late goals to slip past the Golden Eagles 3-0.
Trailing 1-0 in the 62nd minute, Tech (2-11-0, 0-4-0) came within inches of pulling even with the Eagles (8-2-4, 3-0-1), but were upended in its chance at the dramatic equalizer when lady luck swung toward Morehead. Junior Taylor Blazei lined up one of two second-half TTU corners, smacking it into the box where freshman Lauren Brewer's initial attempt was halted by Eagle goalkeeper Elizabeth Floyd.
Not out of the woods just yet, Floyd punched it away before senior Amanda Koch's attempt off the deflection caromed right off the post, just missing the chance at deadlocking the score at 1-1.
The missed opportunity would prove costly for the Golden Eagles as not even a minute later Morehead's Jade Flory scorched one into the back of the net to push the Eagle lead to 2-0. Flory, who came into the weekend third in the conference with seven goals, ended a solid afternoon with a pair of scores after splitting the pipes in the 24th minute to break a scoreless tie.
Morehead would go on to add a late insurance goal, using an Angela Black score with just five seconds left in the match to cap off the scoring at 3-0. Black's net finder was the sixth of the season for the St. Louis, Mo. native, as the dynamic duo of Black and Flory have now pulled even with Jacksonville State's Courtney Hurt and Kelsey Bright for the most combined goals by teammates in the OVC with 15.
Tech's Rebecca Toler tallied five saves over the course of 90 minutes, while the aforementioned Elizabeth Floyd halted both shots that came her way as part of the shutout effort.
The Golden Eagles will finally return home after wrapping up a rigorous stretch of eight-straight on the road, as TTU will play host to Eastern Illinois Friday, Oct. 10 in what will be the first match at Tech Soccer Field in over a month. Kickoff is slated for 3 p.m. CT.
