Huskers Drop 2-1 Decision to No. 9 Cowgirls

Lincoln ? Freshman forward Molly Thomas notched her fifth goal of the season, but Nebraska lost a 2-1 match to No. 9 Oklahoma State in Stillwater, Okla., on Sunday. The Huskers drop to 9-8-1 on the year and 5-4 in the Big 12, while OSU improves to 15-1-2 overall, including a perfect 10-0 at home this season.<?xml:namespace prefix="o" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"?>

 

Scoring chances were few and far between, as both teams battled wind gusts of over 30 miles per hour. Thomas got Nebraska on the board in the 70th minute, when she deflected an Aysha Jamani shot into the back of the net. Junior defender Anna Caniglia sent a long cross from the left side of the field that an OSU defender was able to get a head on, but not clear. Jamani ran the ball down on the right side and made it into the box before cranking out a shot toward the center of the net. Thomas deflected the ball past OSU goalkeeper Erin Stigler, and is now tied for second on the team with 11 points. The assist was Jamani’s second in two games.

 

After a back-and-forth first half, the Cowgirls notched goals in the 53rd and 63rd minute courtesy of Yolanda Odenyo. The senior midfielder is on the Hermann Trophy watch list and proved why, as she collected two goals for the second straight game to move OSU to 6-1-2 in the conference.

 

OSU had an 18-11 advantage in shots, but the Huskers put four shots on goal to just three for the Cowgirls. Playing with the wind in the second half, Nebraska had several opportunities late in the period, forcing Stigler to make three saves in the half. Thomas finished with four shots, putting two on net, while senior midfielder Sari Raber took two shots and two shots on goal.

 

NU finishes the regular season at Iowa State on Friday. Kickoff is schedule for 7 p.m. in Ames, Iowa.