BOX SCORE || WEATHERFORD, Okla. – Southwestern Oklahoma State earned a return trip to Great American Conference Women’s Soccer Championship final by defeating East Central, 5-0, in Friday’s second semifinal from the SWOSU Athletic Complex.
The Lady Bulldogs (12-4-2) scored three times over the final 22 minutes of the first half to seize control of the match. In the 24th minute, Cori Kelly scored the first of her two goals on Friday to open the scoring. Miranda Balezentis netted her team-leading seventh goal seven minutes later. Alexis Russell and Eva Rule connected on a successful corner kick to push the lead to 3-0 at the break.
SWOSU-East Central Photo Gallery
Kelly added her second goal midway through the second half and Russell scored on corner kick off a deflection by the Lady Tiger goalkeeper. The five goals represented a season-high for the Lady Bulldogs. SWOSU had scored four goals four times earlier, most recently against Northwestern Oklahoma State on Oct. 13. They hadn’t reached the five-goal mark since a 7-0 decision against Harding on Oct. 16, 2011.
The offensive explosion made Brooke Siler’s afternoon in net an easier one. Siler, who appeared in a game for just the second time since Sept. 8, made a pair of saves to record a shutout. A pre-game injury to GAC Freshman of the Year and Goalkeeper of the Year Courtney Flores forced Siler into action.
The Lady Bulldogs and Lady Bisons will meet for the GAC Women’s Soccer Tournament Championship at 1 p.m. on Sunday. During the regular season, the Lady Bisons handed the Lady Bulldogs their first conference loss since 2011 when the Lady Bisons won in Searcy, 1-0, on Oct. 25. SWOSU won on its home turf, 4-2, on October 4. The top seed - East Central in 2011 and SWOSU last year - has claimed the previous two GAC Women’s Soccer Championships.
The match airs online at the GAC Sports Network at
gacsportsnetwork.com.