Tops beat Kennesaw State 1-0 in CUSA quarterfinals

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Western Kentucky players celebrate after beating Kennesaw State 1-0 in the Conference USA Women’s Soccer Tournament quarterfinals Sunday in Newark, Delaware.
(WKU ATHLETICS)

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Western Kentucky senior midfielder Rebecca Roth (left) passes the ball in front of Kennesaw State freshman midfielder/forward Aaliyah McDiarmid during the Hilltoppers’ 1-0 win in the Conference USA Women’s Soccer Tournament quarterfinals Sunday in Newark, Delaware.
(WKU ATHLETICS)

Western Kentucky beat Kennesaw State 1-0 in the Conference USA Women’s Soccer Tournament quarterfinals on Sunday afternoon in Newark, Delaware.

With the victory, WKU (12-1-6) advances to the CUSA Tournament semifinals for the first time since 2020.

“I’m really proud of our team,” WKU coach Jason Neidell said in a news release. “We created plenty of chances, and we just couldn’t find the back of the net. Credit to Kennesaw for their tough defending today. We stuck with the game plan and just kept at it. And our moment of magic happened. It was a great team win!”

WKU controlled possession through the opening 10 minutes of the match, keeping Kennesaw State on its heels. Just 53 seconds into play, Cena Carlson drew a foul just outside the box and her free kick resulted in a corner. Mya Jackson recorded the first shot of the match off the corner, but it was saved by the Owls’ goalkeeper. Shortly after, Makenna Egan stole the ball in the Tops’ attacking third and fired a shot toward the bottom corner but was unable to find the back of the net.

In the sixth minute, the Hilltoppers earned another corner kick, taken by Georgia Liapis. Her shot bent toward the back corner of the net but was waved off following a WKU foul in front of the goal. Jackson later made a clean 1-on-1 move around a defender and sent a shot toward the right corner, but the Owls’ goalkeeper made a diving save. The WKU defense held Kennesaw State without a shot in the first half as the Tops continued searching for the opening goal.

The Hilltoppers carried the same intensity into the second half, with Liapis recording WKU’s first shot just seconds in. Moments later, Egan found Carlson downfield for a 1-on-1 opportunity, but Carlson’s shot went just wide. In the 55th minute, Alaina Nugier delivered a free kick to Carlson, whose header was saved by the goalkeeper.

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Still searching for the go-ahead goal, Danielle Lewin entered the match and immediately attempted a shot. Moments later, Lewin received the ball in front of goal and worked her way around the defenders. The goalkeeper made a diving save to deflect Lewin’s ball away, but Jackson crashed in to collect the rebound and fire it into the back of the net in the 78th minute, putting the Tops ahead, 1-0. Jackson scored her third goal of the season and third in as many matches. Lewin recorded her eighth assist of the season, moving her into third place in program history.

The Hilltopper defense held strong through the final minutes, limiting Kennesaw State to just one shot in the match and securing the shutout victory to advance to the semifinals.

The Hilltoppers’ 12th victory moves them into sixth place in program history for single season wins. WKU improved to 2-0-1 all-time against Kennesaw State.

WKU recorded 22 shots, including nine on goal, while holding Kennesaw State to just one shot. Jackson and Liapis led the Hilltoppers with four shots apiece, including two on goal each.

WKU’s back line of Alaina Nugier, Abby Wiedermann and Kora Kipley played all 90 minutes.

The Hilltoppers will play in the semifinals of the CUSA Tournament on Tuesday at 3 p.m. CT against the winner of MTSU and Delaware.