BETHANY, Okla.— It took 110 minutes and a penalty shootout, but Southern Nazarene was able to prevail over East Central with a 4-1 advantage in penalty kicks. The Crimson Storm moved on to the first GAC Women's Soccer Tournament championship game in school history.
 
The Crimson Storm (10-8-1) got on the board near the end of the second half when Sheridan Williams scored off a pass from Brianna Evans in the 37^th minute. The Tigers (7-8-3) answered quickly in the 43^rd minute when Katie Glutz received a pass from Megan Lantrip and put in in the back of the net from 25 yards out.
 
Neither team was able to take advantage of good chances to score in the second half. East Central attempted four shots with three of them being saved by Natasha Fuentes. Southern Nazarene attempted six shots with two of them being on goal. Grace Self put two shots on goal between the 81^st and 82^nd minute, but was unable to put them past the keeper. The game was tied at 1-1 as the game clock expired and the game went to overtime.
 
The Tigers controlled the first overtime period, as they did not allow the Crimson Storm to attempt a shot. They put two shots on goal, but Fuentes saved them both.
 
The script flipped in the second overtime period as Southern Nazarene did not allow East Central to attempt a shot. They attempted five shots, but were unable to put any on goal. Bekah Stewart's shot in the 109^th minute sailed high, so the teams then moved to penalty kicks.

The Crimson Storm were up first and Mallary Pineda put the ball in the net to put SNU up 1-0.  ECU's Kaitie Herrin's penalty kick sailed high, so SNU maintained the 1-0 advantage. Breana Harris was up next and she found the back of the net to give SNU a 2-0 advantage. ECU's Brooke Hazard converted her penalty kick to close the gap to 2-1. Stewart converted for SNU to put them up 3-1. Laiken Knight's attempt also went high to keep the advantage at 3-1. Self sealed the game for Southern Nazarene as she converted her attempt and gave SNU a 4-1 advantage in penalty kicks.
 
"I felt really confident with the penalty kicks," said SNU Head Coach Julie Duncan, "We have been practicing them all week and the girls felt really good about them as they were consistent with them in practice. They did a good job and Natasha was making saves in practice."

Both teams had to battle 25 MPH winds and higher as it played a major factor in the contest.
 
"It was a great game with us having to battle the wind," said Duncan, "It played a huge factor in the game. You can't possess the ball and it makes crazy shots go in. I feel wonderful for the girls."
 
Southern Nazarene attempted 24 shots with seven being on goal. East Central attempted ten shots with eight being on goal.
 
SNU's Fuentes posted seven saves and ECU's Taylor Lowe had six saves.