GOODWELL, Okla. – With just under three minutes left, junior midfielder Jasie Eischen made an incredible long-distance goal from 35-yards out to propel the MACU Women's Soccer team to a 3-2 victory at Oklahoma Panhandle State inside Anchor D Stadium, allowing the Evangels to clinch a share of their first ever Sooner Athletic Conference title.
 
SCORING SUMMARY

• 1^st Half – OPSU – 17:49 – Goal: Emma Daskalov (5), Assist: Andrea Garza – OPSU 1, MACU 0
• 1^st Half – MACU – 22:51 – Goal: Gladis Avalos (5), Assist: Annika Gerdau – MACU 1, OPSU 1
• 2^nd Half – OPSU – 59:13 – Goal: Jacqueline Escalera (4) – OPSU 2, MACU 1
• 2^nd Half – MACU – 80:40 – Goal: Brae Baker (13), Assist: Maria Alonso – MACU 2, OPSU 2
• 2^nd Half – MACU – 87:06 – Goal: Jasie Eischen (1) – MACU 3, OPSU 2

MATCH SUMMARY

• First Half
  • While Mid-America Christian (13-2-2, 8-1 SAC) had the first on-target chances from Maria Alonso in the 11^th minute and Brae Baker in the 12^th minute, it was Oklahoma Panhandle State (4-11, 2-7 SAC) that scored on its only on-goal chance of the half.
  • In the 18^th minute after MACU was called for a foul on the left side of MACU's defensive third, the Aggies executed a perfectly placed deep free kick toward the right post off the foot of Andrea Garza as Emma Daskalov pinpointed a header just inside the top right corner to give OPSU the early 1-0 advantage.
  • In the 23^rd minute, MACU found its equalizer when a right side in-swinging corner was perfectly placed at the top of the six-yard box as Gladis Avalos got her right foot into a shot that was well-placed underneath the right-side crossbar to draw the match even at 1-1.
  • The Evangels held a bulk load of the possession the final 20 minutes, getting four more shots on-goal, but MACU was unable to find a quality shot that challenged OPSU goalkeeper AlaraLynn Gunderson as the two teams went into the half all square at 1-1.
• Second Half
  • Mid-America Christian found itself in a bad spot early in the second half when the left side corner kick from Emily Chavez popped out of the hands of MACU goalkeeper Rachel Torres trying to snare the cross in-traffic as Jacqueline Escalera punched in the point-blank goal with bodies all around on the right side to give OPSU the 2-1 advantage in the 60^th minute.
  • With time winding down in the match, MACU found its equalizer in the 81^st minute. After a foul was called on the Aggies in the midfield, Francesca Martella launched a deep ball into the right side of the 18-yard box that deflected off of Maria Alonso and right to the foot of Brae Baker. The sophomore striker quickly pinpointed a strong 10-yard strike into the bottom left corner of the goal to make it a 2-2 game.
  • With the SAC title on the line with three minutes to go, Jasie Eischen made magic happen for MACU. Tackling the ball away from an OPSU defender in the midfield, Eischen got herself open with a strong stride before putting a monstrous leg from 35-yards out on a long shot that sailed into the left side of the goal out of the reach of the leaping keeper and just underneath the crossbar with the goal that proved to be the winner.
  • The Aggies had one last very dangerous chance in the final minute when OPSU was awarded a corner with 45 seconds to go. However, a Daskalov header off the corner sailed over the crossbar, allowing MACU to escape with the 3-2 victory.

MATCH NOTES

• Despite the close outcome, Mid-America Christian dominated the possession, outshooting Oklahoma Panhandle State by a 15-3 margin with a 10-3 edge in shots on-goal.
• The game-winning goal scored by team captain Jasie Eischen was stunningly her first goal of the season after having many other close missed chances earlier in the season. Eischen is the 12^th different Evangel to score a goal this season as well as eighth different player to net a game-winner of MACU's 13 winning goals.
• Brae Baker continued to make a strong case for postseason honors with her game-tying goal as it marked her 13^th goal of the season, moving her to just a goal shy of moving into MACU's single season top 10. Baker has also put up prolific scoring numbers in SAC play, ranking tied for first in goals per game (1.00) and third in points per game (2.50).
• Gladis Avalos' opening score for MACU moved her into third on the team in goals (5) and points (13).
• With her assist on the Avalos goal, Annika Gerdau officially moved into the program's all-time career top five in assists as her 15^th moves her into a tie for fifth with Liz Lozano (2018-20).
• The assist for Maria Alonso in the match marked her second of the season.
• Rachel Torres picked up the win in-goal as her 13^th win of the season moves her into single season top five for goalie wins, needing just one more to tie her own third-best mark last season and two more to match Melissa Dobie (2010) and Jennifer Starwalt (2020) for the program records.
• Mid-America Christian improved to 7-0 all-time against Oklahoma Panhandle State since the two programs started facing each other in 2019.
• With the victory, MACU claims a share of the Sooner Athletic Conference regular season title with No. 21 John Brown and No. 22 Science & Arts (8-1). It is the first time the Evangels have won at least a share of the league title with the previous closest chance coming in 2020 when MACU finished second in the league standings with an 8-1 record, matching the program's most wins in conference play.

UP NEXT

• Mid-America Christian will now prepare for the SAC Tournament as the Evangels will host a quarterfinal match at the Dill Soccer Field on Monday, Nov. 4. The tournament seedings, dates and times will be announced by the league on Wednesday evening following the conclusion of the Wayland Baptist/Southwestern Christian match.