LACEY, Wash. – The Western Oregon women's soccer team dropped a staggering match in overtime to host Saint Martin's, 4-3, at Saints Field. SMU scored the game-winning goal on a top-shelf shot by Kelli Bannerman just 49 seconds into the extra period.
 
Despite the loss, however, the Wolves (4-7, 1-5 GNAC) got their offense rolling again by matching their single match high with three goals. The first two goals came from senior Taylor Higa and senior Phoebe Hendry tallied the third goal late in the second half.
 
It was a back-and-forth affair for much of the match. Western Oregon took the lead at 12:46 when Higa dribbled around the Saints' defense and scored to the lower left corner of the net. Opportunities at the net were rare in the opening 45 minutes as the Wolves took their 1-0 lead into halftime with a 3-2 advantage in total shots.
 
Saint Martin's (2-8-1, 1-4 GNAC) countered four minutes into the second half on a header from Hannah Franks from a Camryn Althauser corner kick for the equalizer. WOU regained the lead at 67:56 on Higa's sixth goal of the season. Shaelynn Cowles set up the shot with a great middle pass, setting up Higa for the scoring kick.
 
The Saints regrouped just seven minutes later with another header. Kylee Sarchett booted a pass across the net and found Joslin Lindsay on the far post heading in the cross to knot the match at 2-2 at 73:26.
 
WOU used some magic off a corner kick to take a 3-2 lead at 81:35. Higa took the left-footed corner kick and sent it to the middle of the box. Luckily for the Wolves, the ball found the foot of Hendry for a tap-in goal. SMU, however, continued to press for the late equalizer, and it was Bannerman who found the open net of a double assist with 69 seconds left in regulation to tie it up.
 
Sarchett set up Bannerman less than a minute into overtime with a high shot for the golden goal.
 
With Western Oregon's three-match road trip over, the Wolves host Central Washington on Sunday, Oct. 9 at 12 p.m. KWVT will have television coverage in the Salem-area and the matched will be streamed on WOUWolves.com/Live.