SPRINGFIELD – Missouri State women's soccer showed grit and energy in front of its home crowd Thursday night at Betty and Bobby Allison South Stadium, creating numerous chances and keeping the pressure on before a late Kansas City goal handed the Bears a narrow 1-0 loss in their home opener.

"It was a tough home opening loss for the program," said head coach Kirk Nelson. "We had some really bright spots in all four moments of the game, but one small lapse with a couple of minutes left and unfortunately they were able to get one on us to win."

The decisive play came in the 87th minute, when Kansas City capitalized on a quick counterattack to break the deadlock. Missouri State fought until the end, nearly equalizing in the 89th minute when freshman Ava Batiuk pushed a shot just wide, before the Bears ran out of time.

From the opening whistle, Missouri State pressed forward, earning four first-half corner kicks and testing the Roos' defense with shots from Maddie Schneiderhahn, Julia Kristensen, and Brooke Cattoor. The Bears continued to apply pressure after halftime, as Kristensen and senior forward Reilly Heman combined for six shots to keep Kansas City on its heels.

Goalkeeper Ella Becker turned in another steady performance with two saves, while the back line anchored by Kayla Smith and Schneiderhahn kept the Roos attack quiet until the final moments.

Although the result didn't go their way, Missouri State leaves the match with positives—winning the shot count (10-7), creating quality opportunities, and showing resilience until the final whistle.

"I want to give a huge shoutout to all of the fans that came out today to cheer us on," Nelson added. "It was awesome to see the stands full of supporters. Now we focus on getting ready for our game on Sunday. We will bounce back"

The Bears now shift their attention to a two-game road stretch, beginning Sunday, Aug. 24, at SIUE with a 2:00 p.m. kickoff. Missouri State will then close out the trip on Thursday, Aug. 28, with a matchup against SEMO.

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