INDIANA, Pa. – Despite outshooting their opponents 23 to 11, the IUP women's soccer team was held to a tie this afternoon by the visiting Vulcans of California (Pa.).
 
The Crimson Hawks (4-3-1, 3-3-1 PSAC) started game the brighter of the two teams hitting the post of the California goal with just over a minute gone in the game, before then proceeding to spend much of the next ten minutes peppering the Vulcans goal. Despite the early barrage of IUP shots and chances, the Vulcan defense held firm and the away side seemed to gain some confidence from their defensive stand. As the half wore on the visitors continued to grow in stature and bit by bit started to take control of the game back from their hosts, finishing the first half as the more dangerous of the two sides.
 
The half time break seemed to reinvigorate the Crimson Hawks and they started the second half with a sense of purpose and thrust to their play. However, unlike in the first half, this time the Crimson Hawks managed to capitalize on their offensive dominance when in the 57^th minute forward Mahogany Willis was able to break the deadlock for IUP.
 
Midfielder Carly Donia was a major spark for the IUP offense throughout the game, so it unsurprising that when the opening goal finally did come she played a major role in its creation. Donia won the ball off of a Vulcans midfielder before beating a second opposing player and then playing a great ball over the top of the California defense for Willis to run onto. Once Willis did get on to the end of the pass, she showed a composure in front of goal that the IUP offense had been lacking to an extent previously, slamming the ball into the corner of the Vulcan net to give IUP the lead.
 
Following the goal, the chances continued to add up for the Hawks as forwards Willis, Bowman, and Parlavecchio all had several chances to double the IUP lead. In spite of these chances a second goal never came for the Crimson Hawks, and the Vulcans eventually made them pay for their wastefulness in front of the net. With little over seven minutes left to play in the game, Vulcan sophomore Julia Darminio managed to tuck home a scrappy goal from close range to tie the score.
 
Although the goal came against the run of play, the Crimson Hawks nevertheless found themselves once again on level ground with their opponents and facing the prospect of extra time. The two periods of that extra time saw the Crimson Hawks continue to press the Vulcan backline, as IUP racked up 8 shots across the two periods while holding California to a single effort on goal. Unfortunately, none of those shots managed to find their way into the back of the net, and the Crimson Hawks for eventually forced to settle for a draw.
 
Up next
The Crimson Hawks hit the road for a Saturday match against Millersville (7-2, 6-2 PSAC). Kick-off is set for 1:00 p.m at Pucillo Field.
 
Follow
For up-to-date game information, visit www.IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP women's soccer on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk and @IUPsoccer.