KIRKSVILLE, Mo. — It may sound crazy, but it's the truth this season: The path to success for the Bellarmine University women's soccer team seems to be one that takes the Knights far away from Owsley B. Frazier Stadium.
On Sunday at Bulldog Soccer Park, fifth-seeded Bellarmine pulled off a minor upset as junior midfielder
Natalie Teo scored in the second half in a 1-0 victory over fourth-seeded Truman State in the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament quarterfinals.
Bellarmine (12-4-3) will meet top-seeded McKendree in the semifinals at 1:30 p.m. (ET) Friday at the Woehrle Athletic Complex in Jeffersonville, Indiana. The Bearcats defeated eighth-seeded Lewis 2-0.
Bellarmine eliminated Truman State (10-7-1) in the GLVC Tournament for the second season in a row following a 3-0 victory in the semifinals last year. It was the second time this season Bellarmine scored a road win over the Bulldogs after it secured a 1-0 double-overtime victory on Sept. 29.
"All that matters this time of year is you have more than the other team," Knights Coach
Chris Tinius said. "We expected a different challenge from Truman and we got it. I thought they were the aggressor for a good chunk of the game but, to our kids' credit, we found a way."
Sunday's triumph reinforced a theme of the season for Bellarmine. The Knights improved to 7-1-1 on the road compared to a 5-3-2 mark at home. Bellarmine was shut out three straight times at Frazier Stadium leading into the GLVC Tournament, and that streak ended once the Knights hit the road, which would be odd for many years but is par for the course this campaign. Bellarmine has yet to be blanked in enemy territory.
The match was scoreless at halftime and for much of the second half. The Knights broke the deadlock in the 75th minute when Teo converted off a pass from sophomore forward
Isabella Zamborini. It was Teo's third goal of the season, and second game-winner.
"What a service from Izzy and fantastic header from Nat," Tinius said. "That was the opposite of a lot of our games. We weren't nearly as clean — again credit to Truman — but we were better in a moment in front of goal."
Bellarmine's often-impenetrable defense posted its 13th shutout. The shots were even at seven apiece. The Knights had four on goal and the Bulldogs had two, both of which were saved by sophomore goalkeeper
Elyssa Francis.
"The one thing we counted on again from start to finish was our overall work rate," Tinius said. "It bought us time until we could find something. I want to give Truman a lot of credit not just for today but for the program they have. Mike (Cannon) is a great coach and they have a program built on good soccer and class. The battles with them over the years have made us a better team and made me a better coach."
For more coverage of Bellarmine athletics, follow us on Twitter (@BUKnights), Instagram (BUKnights) and Facebook (BUKnights).
BOX SCORE (HTM)
