ATHENS, Ohio – The Missouri State field hockey team (0-2) came within one point in the second half, but fell short to Saint Francis University (2-1) in a 4-1 decision here on Monday, Aug. 29.

"We played with heart and passion, which was something that was really lacking yesterday," head coach Catherine Ostoich said. "Today I saw us playing together as a team and trying to implement the things we've been working on whereas yesterday, it was just every man for themselves. We still have many things to improve on, but it is very encouraging as a coach to see the girls make those types of changes in less than 24 hours."

Saint Francis got on the board first, scoring two goals within one minute thanks to a goal off a deflected shot from a corner play (19:20) and a goal off of a deflected shot (20:25) by Kelli Connolly.

Junior Bianca Mills scored MSU's lone goal early in the second half. Senior Liz Young assisted Mills in scoring off a corner play to cut SFU's lead to 2-1 in the 42^nd minute..

"It was great for the offense to finally put one into the back of the cage," said Ostoich. "Now that we've scored one I think the girls are all hungry to score again."

The Red Flash answered the Bear's goal, scoring the final two goals in the 64^th and 68^th minute.

Sophomore goalkeeper Feli Heinzel was a strong defensive force for the Bears, making five saves on nine shots on goal. Heinzel finished play in Ohio with a total of nine saves off of 15 shots on goal.

"Feli kept us in the games and was a rock for us in the back line," said Ostoich. "The last two goals were unfortunate, but she kept the defensive line strong and communicated well with the team."

Notable Performances

• #16 Sara O'Malley – The freshman showed great defensive skill, making several key defensive stops against the Red Flash offense. Besides Heinzel, O'Malley was the only Bear to put in a full 70 minutes.
• #21 Bianca Mills – The Huntington Beach, Calif., native recorded MSU's first goal of the season.
• #39 Feli Heinzel – The sophomore was a strong defensive for the Bears, recording five saves off of nine shots on goal.

Scoring Recap

• SFU – 19:20, goal off deflected shot from corner play – Kelli Connolly
• SFU – 20:25, goal off deflected shot – Kelli Connolly
• MSU – 42:07, goal off corner play – Bianca Mills
• SFU – 64:58, goal off shot from the right side – Shannon Pereira
• SFU – 68:16, goal off a rebounded shot – Kyra Castano

Next Up For The Bears
Next weekend, Missouri State will travel to Saint Louis for matches against Indiana (Sept. 9) and Saint Louis (Sept. 11). Live stats will be available at www.missouristatebears.com. Live updates will also be available on Facebook (Missouri State Field Hockey) and Twitter (MSUBearsFHockey).