Dominant Second Half Leads Trojans to Win at MVSU

Box Score

ITTA BENA, Miss. – A trio of Trojans each scored their third goals of the season on Thursday night, leading the Little Rock soccer team to a 3-1 victory at Mississippi Valley State.
 
Quin Wilkes had the game-winner in the second half, while Fali Garuba opened the scoring early and Jaclyn Purvine capped it off late.
 
The Trojans (5-4) outshot the Devilettes (2-6) by a 12-5 margin but dominated the second half shots 7-0 to pick up the win. The victory was an important one, as it kicks off a season-long four-game road trip that features a game at Texas on Sunday and then the start of Sun Belt Conference play with away contests against Texas State and Appalachian State the following weekend.
 
Little Rock now boasts four consecutive wins against the Devilettes, and the Trojans remain undefeated all-time against MVSU. The goal scored by MVSU was its first ever against Little Rock, and the Trojans have now outscored them 20-1 in the lifetime series.
 
With the contest still tied through the midway point of the second half as it had been for 25 minutes, Wilkes finally struck to break the tie and give the Trojans the lead for good. In the 65th minute, the sophomore took a pass from Mikayla Uyokpeyi and buried the ball in the back of the net, making it a 2-1 Little Rock lead.
 
The goal brought Wilkes to 20 career points. Uyokpeyi's assist was the 10th of her Trojan career.
 
With time winding down, the Trojans got an insurance goal to put the game out of reach. In the 85th minute, freshman Sairra Tucker slotted a pass to Jaclyn Purvine, and Purvine put the ball home for her third goal of the season. The assist was Tucker's first collegiate point, and she becomes the 14th member of the roster to score a point this year.
 
Little Rock took a 1-0 lead early in the first half as Fali Garuba scored her third goal of the season. Taking a pass from Hali Long, Garuba's aim was true as she put the Trojans ahead.
 
The Trojans, however, were unable to extend the lead. And with five minutes remaining until halftime, the Devilettes tied the contest at 1-1 on a goal by Ernestina Abambila.
 
At the end of the night, Little Rock boasted that 12-5 shots advantage after going into halftime tied at 5-5 in the shots category. The Trojans also took seven corner kicks to MVSU's three.
 
Sara Small (5-4-0) faced just two shots on goal all night and made one save. MVSU goalie Sydney Newport made five saves and faced eight shots on goal.`

Bailey Fithian, Mikayla Uyokpeyi, Long and Small played all 90 minutes for the Trojans.
 
Little Rock now has two days to prepare for its final non-conference opponent and third major-conference opponent of the year. The Trojans are traveling to Texas to battle the Longhorns at 1 p.m. on Sunday. The game will be aired live on the Longhorn Network.