CHENEY, Wash.—The Eastern Washington University soccer team fell to the Boise State Broncos 2-0 at the EWU Soccer Field today (Aug. 31). With the loss, the Eagles drop to 2-2-1 on the season while the Broncos improve to 3-1.
  "We had some good stretches in the first half even after going down a goal early. I think we stepped higher and pinned them the way we play. We made them uncomfortable in that time, but we dropped off and gave them time and space to play," said head coach Chad Bodnar. "They're a good team and they showed that. I think Kelsee Winston had a good game in the net for us, she made some big saves. We just have to be better."

The Broncos started the game off with the first shot, but Eagles goalkeeper Kelsee Winston was there for the save. Boise State scored their first goal of the match in the 11th minute of play by junior Mckenna Kynett just steps outside of the box.

EWU's first chance at a goal came from senior Jenny Chavez but was saved by Broncos goalkeeper Tara Fisher in the first 15 minutes of play. The Eagles saw another chance to score off of a set piece in the corner by freshman Glory Smith to junior Saige Lyons but the equalizer was just off the mark.

Winston was present for her second save of the game, avoiding another Broncos goal in the 31st minute of play. After 45 minutes of play the Broncos were able to keep their lead of 1-0.

In the 54th minute, Eastern committed a foul in box that led to a penalty kick. Boise State was able to convert and extend its lead to 2-0.

Sophomore Emma Vanderhyden gave the Eagles another opportunity at a goal with her corner kick to Lyons, who headed it towards the net but the ball went wide. Another corner kick late in the game came from sophomore Grace Klinkenberg to Chavez. Chavez went for a header, but the ball sailed left and the Eagles were unable to capitalize on the corner kick.

Winston recorded her fourth and fifth save of the game with back-to-back shots from Kynett and redshirt sophomore Ashleigh Harrison with just less than five minutes of play.

Time ran out and EWU was unable to score in today's match, leaving the final score to be 2-0 Broncos.

The Broncos outshot the Eagles 10-7 today, marking the first time EWU has been outshot by their opponent. Winston spent all 90 minutes in net and tied a career-high five saves. Both Chavez and Sariah Keister led Eastern with two shots each, one of which was on goal.

Win-Loss Records
The Eagles record is now 2-2-1 on the 2018 season after loss in today's match against BSU. Today's match marked the 13th time in program history that the Broncos and the Eagles faced off against each other. BSU's is now 3-1 on the year.

Bodnar Bites

On Conceding a Boise State Goal: "We made a couple mistakes today and it costs us the first goal scored. There were a couple mistakes that happened right in a row with some missed clearances and they have some good players up top that will punish you if you do that. They also had some space up top and got past us when we pulled Boise State down. I don't think we needed to do that at that time and again it's a credit to them and their attacking. We have to be better and more disciplined."

On What Boise State Did Well: "They were well organized. I think we played into what they were trying to do as well and we were pretty narrow in our attacking and the quality of services when we got around the edges. It has to be better because there were a lot of times we got around the edges of their back four and had chances to get balls in the box and we didn't. It's little things and small mistakes were making, but at the end of the day were going to move forward and grow from it."

Thoughts on Kelsee Winston's Performance: "She's a good goalkeeper and she made big saves when she had to and it kept us in the game. They could've had one early that would've made it worse for us I think. She's made some big saves and she played well but we have to be better as a group with collectively defending so were not giving up opportunities when she has to make those big saves."

On a Three Game Road Trip and Sunday Prep: "We have a lot of work to do with organization and playing right now and I think we have to look at some things. Whether that's personnel or whether that's how were playing, we have to go back to the drawings a little bit. We are going to use it as practice so we can go out and actually be better."
 
Notables
Winston recorded five saves for the Eagles this game, two in the first half and three in the second half, marking her career high of five saves.

The Eagles saw a few opportunities for a goal with corner kicks throughout today's match, recording six total corner kicks.

What's It Mean
Today's game breaks the 12 straight unbeaten home streak for the Eagles. EWU's last loss at home dated back to Sept. 10, 2017 when they fell to CSUN 2-0. Today's match wraps up a three game home stand where the Eagles went 1-1-1 overall.

What's Next
The Eagles look ahead to their three game road trip against Colorado State (Sept. 7), Denver (Sept. 9), and Utah State (Sept. 14). Eastern returns to the EWU Soccer Field on Sept. 16 when they face South Dakota State at 1 p.m.