KENNESAW, Ga. – Kennesaw State shutout Eastern Kentucky 2-0 on Thursday night at Fifth Third Bank Stadium. The Owls' offense jumped on the Colonels late in the first half as Erin Miller and Tianna Rivera scored in the last two minutes of the first half. Allanah Blye was excellent in net as she finished with 10 saves for the second straight game and posted her fourth clean sheet of the season.
With the win, KSU improved to 3-3-1 to earn three huge points and is now in a three-way tie for sixth place in the ASUN Conference standings. The top eight in the ASUN advance to the conference tournament.
"It was huge," said head coach Benji Walton. "The conference is neck and neck right now, outside of the top two or three spots. So, every point right now is critical. Eastern Kentucky is an outstanding team, and we knew they were an outstanding team with a solid offense. We had to adjust. They came out flying and we made the necessary adjustments. We really worked on changing up our attack this week and the girls did a great job early to get a little more direct in our attack, which I think gave us some more chances. The job's not done, and it is all going to come down to the last week of conference play."
Rivera generated a great chance for the Owls when she dribbled through the EKU defense and had an excellent look on-goal in the 38th minute but the Colonels' keeper was there to corral the shot.
On the next offensive opportunity, the Owls didn't miss. Mai Jensen placed a perfect corner kick into the box and Miller was there for a header for her fourth career goal and second this season for what would be the game-winning goal as KSU struck first.
"Erin is one of our better players in the air and we scheme things for her and a couple of players. If she can time it right, she's usually pretty threatening in those situations. I think every goal in her career has come off a header. It was huge though. Our team knows that we must score better, and we have to finish chances. We were able to do that tonight and I think you were able to see the release with the team."
Kennesaw State continued its offensive blitz a minute later, just seconds before the half. Rivera dribbled past her opponent and struck the ball with her left foot, curling it around the defender and the goalkeeper into the top left corner to put the Owls up 2-0. Rivera's goal was the fifth of her career and the first this season. The two goals in the first half were the most KSU has scored in the first half this season.
"Tianna is a very good player and is a junior," added Walton. "I'm expecting a player of her status to come in with that kind of energy more often. She's been a little timid some this season, but this past week she was lights out. I told her after the game, she just needs to keep playing with the same kind of energy she displayed tonight. When she plays like she did tonight, she is one of the better strikers in the league. I'm really proud of her and the big goal tonight takes a big weight off her shoulders too."
Eastern Kentucky tried to create scoring chances in the second half with 10 shots, but the KSU defense and Blye held strong, keeping EKU off the board to preserve the 2-0 shutout.
Next Match
The Owls host Bellarmine Sunday at 1 p.m. at Fifth Third Bank Stadium.
To keep up with the latest on the Kennesaw State women's soccer team, follow the team on Twitter @KSUOwlNation and @KSUOwlsSoccer or by liking Kennesaw State University on Facebook.
