Nevada women’s soccer took the pitch Thursday, Aug. 22 at Moana Springs Sports Complex for their first game of the season. The Wolf Pack played fiercely but ultimately fell 1-0, in a hard-fought overtime battle versus Eastern Washington. 

EWU’s Sariah Keister delivered the overtime goal—matching her 2018 season total—in the 94th minute off of a corner kick from Riley Walkington. Keister had three total shots on the night, two of which came on goal. 

The Pack had plenty of opportunities to score but were unable to. They had 21 total shots, compared to the Eagles’ 10, along with eight shots on goal as opposed to EWU’s six. However, the Eagles had seven corner kicks, compared to the Pack’s four. 

Nevada had the advantage most of the game, possessing the ball 58 percent of the time, including 38 percent of the time in Eagle territory. 

Although it was a loss for the Pack, there were bright spots on the team. 

Freshman Gabby Brown led Nevada with ten shots, including three on goal. Freshman Luz Arrega had two of her three shots on goal, and sophomore Peyton Lieb had two of her four shots on goal. 

Goalkeeper Kendal Stovall—who entered the 2019 campaign ranked fifth in school history with 99 saves—tallied five saves on the night. The 2018 Mountain West All-Newcomer honoree has saved five or more shots in 12 of her 20 career appearances. Stovall has surrendered one or fewer goals 13 times in her career.

Stovall, along with Hannah Souza, Audrey Barham and Brittany Wiehe were the only Pack players to play all 95 minutes. 

Nevada is coming off a 4-13-1 season under Erin Otagaki, who is entering her third season as head coach. This is the first time the Pack has fallen in their opening contest since 2017 when they lost 2-0 to Fordham University.