Dixie State’s women’s soccer team saw its four-match winning streak come to an end in heartbreaking fashion in a 3-2 double-overtime loss to Hawai’i Pacific on Tuesday night at Legend Solar Stadium. HPU forward Ebony Madrid accounted for all three Shark goals, including the game-winning score with just two seconds remaining in the second OT session to lift her side to the win.

DSU (6-2-0, 2-1-0 PacWest) jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead late in the ninth minute when Montana Hadley played a free kick into Jill Bennett, who headed in her first collegiate goal from three yards out to put the Trailblazers up 1-0.

Madrid found the back of the net twice for the Sharks (5-3-0, 1-2-0 PacWest) in the opening period to give HPU a 2-1 lead at the intermission. Madrid struck for goals in the 19th minute to tie the score at 1-1, then gave her side a one-goal lead in the 34th minute of play.

The Trailblazers turned up the offensive pressure in the second half as DSU attempted 18 shots (five on goal) through the first 39-plus minutes of the stanza, but it could not find the back of the net. Dixie State finally broke through with the equalizer with 5:41 remaining in regulation time when a Nichole Mertz touch was deflected to Alexa Estridge, who pushed a shot just over the goal line to knot the score at 2-2.

Dixie State had a pair of good looks at the game-winning tally in the first overtime as Kamie Hunter and Darian Murdock both had shots on goal, but HPU keeper Lauren Spencer turned the chances away to keep the match deadlocked.

Late in the second overtime period, the Sharks played a ball deep into the Trailblazer zone, but a costly DSU turnover on a clearing attempt led to HPU’s game-clinching goal. Josefine VonDerBurg gained possession of the ball, drove the left wing and found Madrid, who tucked home the game-winner to end the match just before the final horn.

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“We came out flat in the first half and made too many careless errors,” DSU head coach Kacey Bingham said. “We played significantly better in the second half, but with 33 shots in the game and to not capitalize more is disappointing. We did not manage the game well at the end of overtime and we should have at least walked away with a point tonight."

Dixie State lost despite attempting 33 total shots, 12 on goal, with Murdock leading the way with five of her game-high 11 attempts coming on frame.

Dixie State concludes its five-match homestand Saturday, Sept. 30, against PacWest rival California Baptist at 4:30 p.m.

Steve Johnson is the Associate Athletic Director for Media Relations and Collegiate Licensing at Dixie State University. For more DSU Athletics news, please visit www.dixieathletics.com and follow Dixie State on Twitter at @DixieAthletics.

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