Kayla Rollins scored in the first half to help the Milwaukee women’s soccer team secure a 1-1 draw against Marquette at Valley Fields on Sunday evening. Despite their dominance in shots and possession, the Panthers, with a record of 1-6-1, could not find a second goal in this city matchup against the Golden Eagles, who now stand at 2-5-2.
“It seemed like the day ebbed and flowed a lot,” said head coach Kevin Boyd. “We are still trying to get better on our end and some of these teams that we have been playing against have been awfully difficult for us to keep possession against. Now we played a team that we had moments of really nice possession, we just need to build on that.”
Milwaukee struggled initially, managing only one shot attempt before falling behind at the 17:49 mark. “We were watching on the sidelines and it just didn’t feel right,” Boyd remarked about the game’s start. “We, as coaches, came to the conclusion that we might have to give one up to wake up. And that’s what happened – we gave up a goal and then we owned it after that.”
The Panthers responded swiftly with Lainey Higgins getting an opportunity saved before Kayla Rollins netted her third goal of the season at 27:31, following an impressive setup by Zoey Pagels and Elizabeth Reece.
Rollins nearly added another goal before halftime but was denied by Chloe Olson’s save. The Panthers continued pressing but failed to capitalize on their chances throughout the match.
“This squad has had a really rough non-conference schedule,” Boyd noted. “We got challenged tremendously and there’s nothing wrong with that. That can be a good thing if you use it right, but we have to learn how to win now.”
Milwaukee finished with advantages of 15-8 in shots, 5-3 in shots on target, and maintained 55 percent possession during the game. Rollins led with six shot attempts while Higgins contributed three. Parker Donahugh made two saves for Milwaukee.
The Panthers will begin Horizon League play by traveling to Northern Kentucky on Thursday for a game scheduled at 6 p.m. CT.
