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TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Northeastern State women's soccer team beat Missouri Southern State University 2-0 Sunday afternoon at DeLoache Field.

The RiverHawks (3-2, 1-1 MIAA) earned their first points in conference play for 2014, while the Lions dropped to 0-2 in MIAA play (2-3-1 overall). Northeastern State now owns a 6-2-1 mark against Missouri Southern since 2000.

McKenzie Musella put NSU on the scoreboard in the 41st minute when she collected a ball off her own corner kick. The goalkeeper punched the ball away, and it went right back to Musella's feet on the right side of the box. She sent a shot into the upper 90 far post into the back of the net. It was the junior midfielder's second goal of the season and gave the RiverHawks a 1-0 lead heading into halftime.

The RiverHawks added an insurance marker in the 59th minute. Sophomore midfielder Kelsey McIntyre found sophomore forward Anastasia Robinson in space on the left flank. Robinson crossed the ball into the six-yard box where sophomore midfielder McKenna Jetton was waiting to head the ball past the goalie for her first goal of the season.

NSU outshot MSSU 22-11.  Sophomore goalkeeper Jordan Woodruff earned her first shutout of the season. She had six saves in 90 minutes and now owns a 3-2 record in 2014.

Northeastern State will next be on the road to take on Northwest Missouri State at 5 p.m. Sept. 26 in Maryville, Mo.

Scoring Summary 
MSSU    0   0   -   0
NSU       1   1   -   2
 
Individual Scoring
McKenzie Musella (NSU) at 40:40 (unassisted)
McKenna Jetton (NSU) at 58:36 (Anastasia Robinson, Kelsey McIntyre)
 
Goalkeeper Saves
Beth Hammons (MSSU) – 7
Jordan Woodruff (NSU) – 6
 
NORTHEASTERN STATE COACH CHASE WOOTEN
On earning three points this weekend...
"To be painfully honest, I think you have to win your home matches. This is a tough league. Splitting with those two teams (Missouri Southern and Central Oklahoma) is fine. It's not the end of the world. But it does put some stress on us on the road to keep pace with everybody else. We played at a pretty good level this afternoon. We did a good job, collectively, achieving the things we talked about in the clubhouse before coming onto the field. On Friday night we struggled in that department. The ideas we talked about just did not translate to the game very cleanly. That's not to say we played horribly on Friday. I thought there were moments where we were very good. Today was just a much more complete match. Missouri Southern played well. They took some shots that just barely missed the goal. If they put those on, then it's a whole different kind of match. To our credit, we put away some chances. We missed some sitters, too. Overall, we'll take the split. We just know that puts us a little bit of a bind. We are going to need to make one up on the road somewhere."

On McKenzie Musella's goal...
"We haven't scored off a corner yet this season. It's on our radar that we can do well on corners. We have some good ball winners in there. Missouri Southern has some big, strong kids in there. It was hard to get the first ball in a favorable position, but McKenzie did a good job. She was composed. The opportunity came and she was able to put it on frame. I'm happy for her getting that goal."

On the upcoming road trip...
"We have film now from two matches that we can watch and assess. Overall, as we get ready for the (matches against Missouri Western and Northwest Missouri State), we just have to be at a place where we can play a little bit faster. We need to know where our options are. If we can achieve that, then we can play with everybody. If we start doing things at an individual level, teams will be able to pull us apart."
 
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