West Central Reporter

Western Illinois University's women's soccer team faced Southern Indiana on Thursday in their first home match in two weeks. The match marked the first encounter between the two teams as members of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC).

Southern Indiana dominated early, spending significant time in Western's half and earning three corners within sixteen minutes. However, Western's defense held firm, preventing any goals. Western had a chance in the nineteenth minute when Alanna Pennington took a shot that narrowly missed.

The breakthrough came for Southern Indiana in the fortieth minute following a handball penalty. Peyton Murphy converted the penalty, scoring what would be the only goal of the match.

In the second half, Western struggled to create opportunities against Southern Indiana's solid defense. They managed to draw free kicks late in the game but could not capitalize on them to equalize.

With this loss, Western Illinois' record falls to 2-5-4 overall and 0-1-3 in OVC play. Meanwhile, Southern Indiana holds fourth place in the conference with a 2-1-1 record.

Western Illinois will next face Tennessee Tech on Sunday in Cookeville.