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POCATELLO, Idaho – The Idaho State soccer team lost a hard-fought battle to Idaho Friday evening as the Vandals prevailed 2-1 at Davis Field.
"Today hurt," said Head Coach
Allison Gibson. "We had our chances but we were unable to capitalize on them. It's still about finding the internal switch in each player to decide how much we want this. Idaho wanted it more than we did today."
In the first half, both teams played nearly evenly as the Bengals (1-8-1, 0-1 BSC) registered seven shots including four on goal, and the Vandals (5-4-1, 1-0 BSC) fired seven shots with three on goal. Idaho State controlled the ball for much of the first part of the first half, but in the 12th minute Idaho broke free as Kavita Battan ran on to the through ball from Olivia Baggerly and knocked one past sophomore goalkeeper
Shawna Hennings.
The Bengals weren't able to capitalize on later opportunities and left for halftime facing a one-goal deficit.
Following the halfway mark, both teams hit the pitch with increased aggression as three yellow cards were issued in the second, one to Idaho State and two to Idaho. Despite the physical play, shot counts increased in the second with 11 shots for ISU and 13 for Idaho.
In the 57th minute, the Bengals' pressure paid off as sophomore forward
Maria Sanchez rebounded a blocked ball from senior midfielder
Lauren Bermudez' earlier header and fired the ball past Idaho goalkeeper Amanda Poertner for her ninth goal of the season.
ISU and Idaho continued match each other as the game remained tied for nearly 30 minutes. Hennings made a career-high nine saves and kept Idaho State in the game from the goal line, but Idaho capitalized on a rebounded shot in the 86th minute. Hennings blocked a shot attempt, but Battan was there to clean up the rebound and knocked the game-winner into the back-center of the goal.
Idaho State is back in action Sunday, Sept. 27 against Eastern Washington at 1 p.m. at Davis Field.
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