BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — WKU Soccer (6-5-3, 3-2-1 C-USA) got an early lead and held on to it against Florida Atlantic (7-6-3, 3-3-1) on Thursday for its second straight win.
"I thought we played a tremendous first half and I thought they came out really hungry in the second half and really put the pressure on us," said head coach Jason Neidell. "It was kind of a bend don't break motto in the second half, but we absorbed a lot of pressure. I'm really happy for our kids and how hungry they played and how hard they defended, particularly in the second half."
The Lady Toppers found the back of the net in the 11th minute off a corner kick. Katie Erwin delivered the ball into the box and Abby Davis was able to bring the ball down with a header that ricocheted off an Owl defender and came right back to Davis. The freshman put her left foot on it and sailed it to the top left corner of the goal out of the keeper's reach.
It was Davis' first career goal as a Lady Topper.
The WKU defense held strong for its seventh shutout of the season. The Lady Toppers faced 12 total shots from the Owls and stopped several more scoring opportunities before a shot was taken.
Goalkeeper Alexis Bach made four saves on the night for her sixth clean sheet of the year. Bach also stopped a plethora of dangerous attacks by the Owls.
Florida Atlantic came into the match as the third highest scoring offense in Conference USA. The Owls' most recent match featured six total goals for Florida Atlantic in a 6-0 win against UTEP. It was only the third time this season Florida Atlantic has been held scoreless in a C-USA match.
In all, WKU has allowed just nine goals in 14 matches this season for a 0.64 goals against average (GAA). Bach's GAA is 0.67 for the season.
WKU will be back home on Sunday, Oct. 16 to host UAB at 1:00 p.m. at the WKU Soccer Complex.
How to follow the Lady Toppers: For complete information on WKU Soccer, visit WKUSports.com or follow the program via social media @WKU_Soccer on Twitter and Instagram and @WKUSoccer on Facebook.
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