By Davis Gregory, UT Martin Sports Information
MARTIN, Tenn.- The University of Tennessee at Martin soccer team made a quality final push but couldn’t complete the comeback and fell short of Murray State, 2-1.
UT Martin (2-3) put up 10 shots on the evening with six directed on goal. Makayla Robinson found the back of the net for her third goal of the fall while also leading the team in shots (three) and shots on goal (two). Abbie McHenry, Allie Buchmann, Nyeemah Prescod-Beckles and Rachel Okoro also each targeted a shot on goal.
Sophomore Poppy Bastock snared six saves on eight shots on goal for the Skyhawks, coming up just shy of tying her season high of seven saves.
The Racers (2-4) connected for a goal in each half. In the first 45 it was Chole Barnthouse who threaded the needle on the left side of the goal to put Murray State up early. Then in the 53rd minute Hailey Cole scored on a deflection following a corner kick.
It was a battle back-and-forth in the second half with solid chances for both squads. After trailing 2-0, UT Martin surged forward in the 87th minute as Okoro found Robinson to give the Skyhawks a shot at the comeback.
UT Martin had one final chance at the equalizer but Robinson’s header in the final seconds went out at the top right of the goal.
“I was happy to see us keep battling to the end,” Skyhawk head coach Mike Varga said. “It was a frustrating match and Murray State did a good job of taking our rhythm early. We kept at it and were inches away from equalizing in the final minute.”
UT Martin will hit the road for a lengthy road trip that won’t see the Skyhawks play again in Martin until Sept. 24. The first matchup of the road swing will be at Indiana State at 2 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 7 on ESPN+.
Graphic courtesy of UT Martin Sports Information
