NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Belmont women’s soccer team (10-2-1, 4-1 A-Sun) was tripped up by visiting Kennesaw State (10-2, 5-0 A-Sun) on Friday night at the Whitten Soccer Complex. The Bruins were held off 3-0 and fall to 4-1 in conference play while Kennesaw State remains the only unbeaten team in the A-Sun. The loss snaps a five match win streak for BU.

The first half of the match was fairly even with both teams able to penetrate deep on each end of the field. In the 13th minute, sophomore Annie Musacchio (Nashville, Tenn.) passed to freshman Jayme Trocino (Franklin, Tenn.) inside the box but the shot skimmed the top of the crossbar. The Bruins picked up back-to-back free kicks but were unable to convert. A shot by Annie Phillips in the 42nd minute was batted out of the corner of the net by senior Micaela Crowley (Hoover, Ala.) to pick up her second save of the first stanza and keep the game locked in a 0-0 stalemate.

After the break, Kennesaw State became more aggressive and after a series of fouls was able to put the ball just behind the outstretched gloves of Crowley to put the Owls up, 1-0. Less than 40 seconds later, junior Jamie Bullock (Franklin, Tenn.) attempted to equalize the score but her header sailed over the crossbar. About three minutes later, the Owls were awarded a penalty kick after a Belmont handball inside the box. Sara Clapham was able to sneak the ball past Crowley to put the Owls up, 2-0.

Down by two goals, the Bruins continued to fight hard into the match’s waning minutes. Phillips notched KSU’s third goal of the night on a long pass from Clapham in the 74th minute to put the game away for good.

“This is an example of a team doing things well and still coming away with a loss,” said Head Coach Lisa Howe. “Kennesaw State is a good team and we played them well.

“On that first goal, I thought we had good shape in the back but the second goal was very emotional for the team. It was hard for us to recover after that.

“We have come a long way since the first time we faced Kennesaw State a few years ago. I thought we matched up better than we ever have. We have made a lot of progress. Now, we just need to put this loss behind us and get ready for Sunday.”

KSU held the advantage in shots, 11-7, and dominated in corner kicks, 5-0.

Crowley went the distance inside the net and finished with four saves. Freshman Ivy Bentley (Huntsville, Ala.) led the Bruins with two shots while seniors Sarah Brandt (Hendersonville, Tenn.) and Kari Lennon (Hoover, Ala.), Bullock, Trocino, and Musacchio all notched one.

Belmont returns to action on Sunday on the road for a match at Mercer. Match time is set for 2 p.m. CT. The match will be broadcast live on ASun.tv.