HAMMOND, La. – The Sam Houston State soccer team (3-9-3, 2-4-2 SLC) played a solid opening 45 minutes, but the Bearkats could not hold on in the second half as the team fell 2-0 to Southeastern Louisiana, Sunday afternoon at Strawberry Stadium.

Micaela Birt registered the first shot of the match in the third minute and Tilde Orn followed five minutes later with a shot of her own. Both shots were raked in by SLU goalkeeper Nadine Maher. Returning the favor, starting goalkeeper Christina Hendershot tallied her first of three saves in the 16th minute to keep SLU off the board.

Two more Bearkats – Grace Stine and Meredith Carlson – recorded shots in the first half, but neither team could break through the scoreless deadlock.

Returning from halftime, SLU took a 1-0 lead in the 46th minute after Amber Marinero snuck a shot past Hendershot. After intense action in the box four minutes later, Hendershot was issued a red card and left the match.

Replacing the senior keeper was junior Carlota Suarez Crespo, who recorded back-to-back saves in the 53rd minute to keep the match within reach. However, at the 64:54 mark, SLU's Brogan Bernadas bounced what was meant to be a cross off the inside of the far post into the back of the net to give the Lady Lions a 2-0 advantage.

The Bearkats tried to respond with shots from Hannah Dupin and Courtney Pawlik, but the squad was unable to overcome the two-goal deficit. With the loss, the Kats fell to 3-9-3 overall and 2-4-2 in SLC action.

Coming Up Next

The Bearkats return home to Pritchett Field on Oct. 19 for a 6:30 p.m. contest against Abilene Christian. For all the latest information on the Sam Houston State soccer team, visit gobearkats.com or follow @BearkatsSOC on Twitter.