Second-Half Rally Falls Short as Women's Soccer Loses 2-1 at Middle Tennessee State - Florida Atlantic Owls Official Athletic Site

Second-Half Rally Falls Short as Women's Soccer Loses 2-1 at Middle Tennessee State

Junior forward Allison Griffin scored her third fourth goal of the season in Friday's loss at Middle Tennessee State

Oct. 7, 2011

Final Stats

Boca Raton, FL - A fierce second-half rally by the Florida Atlantic University women's soccer team fell just short of earning the squad's first road victory of the season. Instead, the Owls dropped a hard-fought 2-1 Sun Belt Conference match to a quality Middle Tennessee State University opponent on Friday night at the Blue Raider Soccer Field in Murfreesboro, Tenn.

FAU scored a goal and took four shots at the MTSU goal in the final 11 minutes in a terrific attempt to overcome a 2-0 deficit. Junior forward Allison Griffin scored a goal -- her fourth of the season -- with four minutes remaining. Sophomore forward Jesse Shugg made a hard run toward the goal before passing to Griffin, who finished off the play for the team's lone goal of the night.

The loss drops the Owls to 5-6-1 on the season and 1-3-1 in Sun Belt Conference play. MTSU, the defending conference tournament champion, improves to 3-2 in league action and 6-7 overall. FAU returns to the pitch on Sunday, October 9, when it travels to Western Kentucky University for a league match starting at 1 p.m.

The host Blue Raiders broke a scoreless match with a goal by Paige Goeglein in the 25th minute. The scoring opportunity was set up after a loose ball following a couple of deflections in front of the FAU goal. MTSU took a 2-0 advantage in the 59th minute when Shan Jones scored her fifth goal of the season.

FAU had several excellent scoring opportunities in the match. Junior defender Breanna Lewis fired a shot that hit the crossbar in the 37th minute, and freshman defender Amunique Scott fired a shot in the 79th minute to start the furious rally. Her shot was stopped by MTSU goalkeeper Jessica Gilchrist. Then, a header by sophomore forward Brittney Nash sailed high just moments before Griffin's goal. Freshman defender Meagan Borger attempted a shot that went high of the crossbar as time expired.

Shugg led the Owls' offensive attack with two shots, while six players each had one shot.

Live stats of Sunday's match against the Hilltoppers will be provided at www.fausports.com.