LOUISVILLE, Ky. — One of the most astonishing facts about the Bellarmine University women's soccer team's landmark 2015 season is that the Knights won a program-record 17 matches without scoring off a single corner kick.

That strange string of futility ended in the most satisfying fashion possible Sunday at Owsley B. Frazier Stadium. Senior midfielder Lauren Holder redirected a corner kick from senior forward Mary Beth Gorham into the net to trigger a wild celebration as the No. 8 Knights rallied to defeat Missouri-St. Louis 2-1 in overtime in Great Lakes Valley Conference play.

Playing the first of three consecutive 2015 DII NCAA Tournament teams, Bellarmine (4-0, 2-0 GLVC) tied the match on a historic Gorham goal with less than four minutes left in regulation before Holder ended the contest against the Tritons (1-1, 1-1) less than two minutes into the extra session.

"That was a wonderful win in general but also for this particular group of players," Bellarmine Coach Chris Tinius said. "I thought we played some pretty good soccer for much of the first half but lacked a little toughness. I thought we were more aggressive higher up the field in the second half, partly because we had to, but mainly because we shifted our mentality. Sometimes you have to just gut out a win against a very good team. Hopefully we can learn from the success and move forward with it."

While Bellarmine commanded possession for the majority of the match, the Knights found themselves down 1-0 deep in the second half after Missouri-St. Louis perfectly executed a set piece in the 24th minute, with Emily Mosier heading in a Taylor Tosovsky corner kick.

All three of the match's goals were ultimately scored off set pieces. In the 87th minute, a long free kick from the right wing was deflected to Gorham toward the right of the box, and she blasted a shot over the goalkeeper and inside the far post. With her third goal of the season, Gorham tied Jaime Halas (2003-06) for the program's career record with 39. The All-American already is the all-time points leader.

Tinius was proud that the reigning GLVC Offensive Player of the Year responded to some tough love during halftime discussions.

"I want to thank Mary Beth for letting me coach her hard," Tinius said. "I've heard some coaches say that if you can't coach your best players hard, you can't coach anyone hard. Well, that only works if the player cooperates. I challenged the whole team at halftime, but I was definitely harder on a few people. Mary Beth was one of them and she responded in a fantastic manner."

After scoring the tying goal, Bellarmine didn't let up on its attack and capitalized again in overtime. In the 92nd minute, the Knights set up for their 13th corner kick of the match. Gorham rifled a low line drive inside the goal area. Holder was right in front of the goalkeeper and stuck her foot up high, redirecting it inside the near post for the game-winner. The two-time All-Region selection had the assist on the game-winning goal in Friday's 1-0 win over Maryville, which tied her for the program's all-time assists mark.

"Mary Beth had a great strike with a few minutes left, and we finally scored on a corner at the start of overtime," Tinius said. "We don't talk a lot about personal milestones, but the things Lauren and Mary Beth have accomplished the last few games, they're special players. It was fitting they connected again for that goal."

Bellarmine's defense was strong throughout the match against the Tritons' dynamic attack and particularly buckled down in the second half and overtime, allowing a single shot and none on frame. Bellarmine had a 9-6 advantage in shots for the match and a 13-1 advantage in corner kicks.

Bellarmine plays at Truman State and at Quincy next weekend. Both made the 2015 NCAA Tournament.

"I thought as we got more aggressive and tuned in, it helped our defending too," Tinius said. "To hold that team to one shot in the second half is pretty unbelievable.

"We talked about these first two weekends of conference being like the first round of a golf tournament. You can't win the tournament on the first day, but you can set yourself up for a smoother or bumpier ride. We just finished the front nine with a bang. Now we'll see what we can do next weekend."

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