ALVA, Okla. — The last time Southern Nazarene was in Alva, they escaped in double-overtime with a 4-3 win in 2017. What happened in 2018? SNU escaped on Saturday afternoon with a 3-2 win in double-overtime again and picked up their first Great American Conference win of the season.
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The Crimson Storm (2-10, 1-5 GAC) fired a season-high 27 shots in the match as they landed 13 of those on goal. The Rangers (1-8-1, 1-5 GAC) took 19 shots in the game and put eight of those on target. NWOSU tallied 10 saves in the match while SNU finished with six.
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It was a big day for freshman
Karsyn Matthews as she scored two goals, including the golden goal in double-OT to seal the win. She finished with a season-high four shots on goal in her six shot attempts. Senior
Kelsi Bussert notched the other goal for Southern Nazarene as she put three of her four shots on target in the match.
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Junior
Kylee Payne also had a big game as she landed four of her season-high eight shots on goal and also finished with an assist.
Natalie James and
DeLaney Stewart each finished with a shot on goal for SNU as James also finished with an assist. Sophomore goalkeeper
Ashlynn Pritchett played all 109:55 minutes in goal, as she recorded six saves in goal for the Storm.
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Shelby Gibbs got Northwestern Oklahoma State on the board in a hurry as the Rangers jumped out to a 1-0 lead six minutes into the match. SNU tied the game in the 21
st minute after James found Bussert, but NWOSU re-gained the lead in the 22
nd minute to take a 2-1 lead into halftime.
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The Crimson Storm tied the match in the 80
th minute courtesy of a goal from Matthews, as it was pushed to overtime with a 2-2 score. SNU held the Rangers without a shot in the first overtime period, but couldn't get any of their four shots to find the back of the net.
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In the second overtime period, the defenses on both sides sharpened, as the match appeared to be heading to a tie. Matthews was not about to let that happen however, as she scored a goal in the final minute of double-overtime to seal the win for SNU.
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Southern Nazarene will hit the road next week for a pair of GAC matches against Harding on Thursday night and Ouachita Baptist on Saturday afternoon.
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