Story by Quinnen Taylor, contributing writer

The Murray State women’s soccer team finished its season with a 2-1 loss against the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Cougars in the semifinal of the OVC Tournament Friday at Cutchin Field.

The defeat ends the Racers unbeaten OVC streak at 21 games, giving them an OVC record of 7-0-3 this season.

Head Coach Jeremy Groves said he was displeased with the outcome but satisfied about his team’s successful season.

“It was a scrappy game, not much quality to it, which I think was a little bit disappointing from our point of view,” Groves said. “I’m proud of the girls and I’m proud of what they’ve done this season. It’s disappointing to end like this but what these girls have done for this program is tremendous.”

The first half presented back-and-forth shifts in momentum.

The Racers couldn’t capitalize on shots that missed the net by junior forward Harriet Withers, freshman defender Karsyn Hasch and senior midfielder Ali Critcher.

Both teams were held scoreless in the half as Murray State ended the first having attempted three shots with two shots on goal, while SIUE took two shots with one of them on goal.

During the second half, the Cougars led off with a goal by junior midfielder Sydney Moore at the  56:52 mark to make it 1-0.

Murray State responded minutes later with a goal by Withers at 64:19 to tie the contest 1-1.

In the overtime period, the Cougars’ freshman midfielder Peyton Roehnelt connected at 99:48 to end play on a 2-1 final score.

The Racers concluded the game with five of their eight shots on goal, while the Cougars attempted 13 shots with seven of them on goal.

Earlier in the day, the Eastern Kentucky Colonels clinched their semifinal game with a victory over the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles in penalty kicks.

The OVC Championship game is at 1 p.m. Sunday at Cutchin Field between the Cougars and the Colonels.