Watford's Record-Breaking Day Lifts Racers Over Belmont

Friday, October 25

Nashville, Tenn.

4 P.M.

Murray State

10-7-0, 7-2-0

Belmont

4-8-4, 3-4-2

Murray St.

Belmont

Photo by: Dan Hasko

Watford's Record-Breaking Day Lifts Racers Over Belmont

10/25/2019 9:30:00 PM | Women's Soccer

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Murray State women's soccer played their final road match of the regular season on Friday afternoon, meeting Belmont to continue the 2019 Ohio Valley Conference Campaign. While a consistent rain fell from the sky during the contest, the Racers would enjoy their time in Music City, earning a 3-0 victory while outshooting the Bruins 14-7 at E.S. Rose Park in Nashville, Tennessee.

The Racers generated multiple scoring opportunities just inside of the 15^th minute mark of the competition, and would break open the scoring in the 18^th minute when Miyah Watford netted her OVC-leading 13th goal of the season to give her side a 1-0 lead. The attack began when Lilly Strader carried the ball down the left wing before slotting it across the penalty area to Rebecca Kubin who touched it to Watford for the score.

Kubin also created a promising attack just minutes later, but Bruin goalkeeper Lily Herman was able to keep the deficit to just a single goal as the Racers entered halftime with a 1-0 lead while outshooting Belmont 6-3 through 45 minutes of action.

Coming out of the halftime break, the Racers looked to be in total control, and doubled their lead in the 56^th minute when Abby Jones buried a free kick from just outside the penalty area as Murray State carried a 2-0 advantage in the early stages of the second half.

The Racers would tack on one more goal in the closing moments of the game when Miyah Watford put her name on the score sheet for the second time, carrying the ball from midfield before beating a Belmont defender and capping a dominant overall performance with an 88^th minute goal to seal a 3-0 victory for the Racers on the road in Nashville.

Watford's brace means she now holds the Murray State single-season scoring record as her 14 goals in 2019 breaks the old record of 13, previously held by Harriet Withers (2017), Julie Mooney (2014) and Theresa Reedy (2004). Her 33 points on the year also breaks the program's single-season points record of 29, previously held by Julie Mooney (2014) and Harriet Withers (2015).

The free kick goal from Abby Jones brings her season total to five, as she now has an even 20 points in 2019 with five goals and ten assists. The assist from Strader is the first of her collegiate career, while the assist from Kubin is her third of the season.

Anchoring the Murray State defense, Jamie Skarupsky recorded four saves between the posts to notch her first clean sheet in a Racer uniform.

"Finishing chances…you score three goals on the road and you put yourself in a good spot, but I thought for what Jamie (Skarupsky) had to do today in goal, she made some incredible saves and came off her line really well. The back four were fantastic…everything from the back four to the front three was really good today," said MSU head coach Matt Lodge.

The Racers (10-7, 7-2) have clinched a semifinal berth in this year's OVC Tournament by securing, at the minimum, a second-place finish in the regular season table, but are still in the running for a regular season championship as they trail Southeast Missouri by just one point with one game remaining for both sides.

The Racers will bring their regular season schedule to a close on Sunday, when they return home to host Eastern Illinois at Cutchin Field in Murray, Kentucky – kickoff is slated for 1:00 p.m.