Missoula, Mont. – Facing a two-goal deficit late in its first appearance at the Big Sky Conference Tournament in five seasons, the sixth-seeded Eastern Washington University women's soccer team saw its valiant comeback effort fall just short as No. 3 Northern Arizona hung on to win, 3-2, Thursday, Nov. 6, at Montana's South Campus Stadium.

Won-Loss Records
Eastern sees its season come to an end, finishing with an overall record of 8-9, good for the second-most wins in single-season history and the highest number of victories since 2009. Northern Arizona improves to 10-5-4 on the year and will face No. 2 Portland State in a semifinal match tomorrow, Nov. 7.

Turning Point
The Lumberjacks benefited from a number of fortunate bounces on the day, scoring their second goal on a botched clearance in the 27th minute before netting their third score on a rebound off of the crossbar in the 52nd minute.

EWU would push numbers forward deep into the proceedings, leading to a goal from freshman Savannah Hoekstra in the 83rd minute. The Eagles seemed poised to complete their comeback, getting a handful of looks at NAU's goal along with a dangerous free kick at the top of the Lumberjacks' box.

Northern Arizona's defense bent under the onslaught but it would not break as the Lumberjacks held on for the victory.

Top Performers
Both Hoekstra and senior Cassie Black scored their sixth goals of the season with Black's coming in the 21st minute of the match. Hoekstra provided the assist on Black's score, good for her fourth helper of the season.

Black led all players with six shots, four of which were on target as the Eagles' attack pressured Northern Arizona's keeper throughout the match. Hoekstra and freshman Chloe Williams added a pair of shots while junior Shayla Weiler and freshman Caylah Lunning registered one shot apiece.

Senior Nathalie Schwery came up with six saves in goal for Eastern.

Key Statistics
The Lumberjacks edged EWU in shots, 16-12, but the Eagles registered seven shots in the second half to NAU's six.

Eastern also managed to earn six corner kicks while limiting Northern Arizona to a pair of corner kicks, both of which came in the first half.

NAU's defense was routinely tested in the second half and the Lumberjacks were forced to foul on numerous occasions to stop Eastern going forward, getting whistled for eight fouls over the final 45 minutes. Northern Arizona was called for a total of 12 fouls on the day to EWU's four.

Quoting Coach Bodnar
"When we met at the end of the match, I thanked the seniors for helping us build a platform. They won eight games this year, and we were in every single game this season. There's not a game that we didn't have a chance to win. I think that group has showed a lot of character to work as hard as they did and really try to build something.

"We had to go regroup at halftime down 2-1, and we talked about digging deep and continuing to work no matter what happens. We let in a third, and I think a lot of groups would have quit. Credit to this team as a whole. They came back and got a second one late and missed three or four chances to tie it up. It's tough, but these kids have a lot of character and they didn't quit. That's something that we're proud of."

Match Notes
* Eastern was making its first appearance in Big Sky Tournament in five seasons and just its sixth appearance in program history.

* Hoekstra recorded a goal and an assist in the same match for the second time this season. Her three points fall one shy of her season high of four set back on Sept. 21.

* Black's goal upped her point total to a team-best 17 points on the year, good for the fourth-most points in a single season. She recorded double-figure point totals in three of her four years at Eastern and leaves with a program-record 55 career points.

* Despite not registering a point today, Williams finished the season with 16 points, giving EWU three players with double-figure points in the same season for the first time in program history.

Tweet of the Match

Season Notes
* The Eagles won five Big Sky games this season, the most in one year in program history.

* Eastern saw six players receive All-Big Sky honors, the most in one season since 2009.

* EWU scored in each of its first 10 matches this season, the longest scoring streak to open a campaign in the program's history. The Eagles finished the year with 27 goals, the second-most all-time and just one shy of the program's single-season record.

* Eastern assisted on a program-record 18 goals this year while Black set a single-season record with five helpers. Hoekstra and Williams registered four assists apiece while senior Haley Stading and junior Alisha Stott each chipped in two assists.