UNI Soccer: Panthers Score a Draw in Des Moines

The University of Northern Iowa women's soccer team earned a 1-1 draw in overtime against in-state foe and Missouri Valley Conference leader Drake (6-8-2, 3-0-2 MVC) on Wednesday afternoon. The contest marked the Panthers' (5-7-5, 1-2-2 MVC) seventh game to go into overtime this season and the fifth to go into a second overtime. Katie Witt put the Panthers on the board in the 10th minute, taking a pass from Marianne Gagne and getting it past the Drake goalkeeper for her first goal of the season. "We started the game really well and scored a deserved goal," said UNI Head Coach James Price. "They scored a fantastic equalizer and carried the momentum for a while." The equalizer came almost twenty minutes later as Drake answered with a goal of their own at the 35 minute mark. Rhian Pritchard found the back of the net from a cross to tie it at 1-1 before the end of the first half. "We finished the game very strongly and could have won the game," said Price. "(I am) very happy with the performance overall." Whitney Blunt finished with a season-high 11 saves, including three in the overtime periods to hold the score at 1-1. The saves put Blunt at a season total of 81 saves, surpassing her career-best of 78 that she set last season. The Panthers will return to the field for Senior Night on Sunday for their final game home of the season against St. Ambrose. Kickoff for the Senior Night contest is scheduled for 7 p.m.