GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- Mackenzie Winters scored 34 seconds into overtime to boost King University to a 2-1 victory over Tusculum University in non-conference women's soccer action Tuesday night at Pioneer Field.
The Pioneers (0-2-0) outshot the Tornado (1-1-0) 15-2 in the first half and 20-11 in the match, but could only muster a goal from Kenzie Ellenburg in the first half. Ellenburg has scored all three of the Pioneers' goals through their first two matches.
Tusculum appeared poised to nurse the one-goal margin to the finish, but a goal off a corner kick by Presley Bacon knotted the score at 1-1 with just over 19 minutes to play. After being outshot in a lopsided fashion in the first half, King outshot Tusculum 8-5 in the second half and had the only shot of overtime.
King keeper Kristal Garcia kept her squad close by making 11 saves in the match, including eight during the first-half barrage from Tusculum. The Pioneers were also unlucky with a pair of shots off the crossbar, one in each half.
Tusculum came out and put the pressure on from the opening whistle, as Brianna Garcia was denied from close range in the second minute and Ellenburg was stopped on a header off a corner in the third minute. The Pioneers had four shots on goal and five total shots in the first 16 minutes, and the pressure paid off at 19:27 as Tusculum earned a corner kick, which Kaitlyn Watson sent into the box off Yvette Raaijen to Ellenburg for a 1-0 Pioneer lead.
King did not have its first shot attempt until the 31st minute, when Bella Crisci shot wide from distance. Tusculum continued to pressure, with Ellenburg heading a corner high in the 38th minute and Raaijen sending a free kick to Garcia, who punched it over the top in the 39th minute. Bailey Bylotas nearly made it 2-0 in the 40th minute, but her shot from 15 yards rang square off the crossbar. Meanwhile, the Tornado put its only shot on goal in the final 40 seconds of the half, with Pioneer keeper Grayson Patterson collecting a header from Desi White off a free kick.
In the second half, the Tornado showed early life as Veronica Roach was stopped by Patterson from close range in the 49th minute. Bylotas had a creative back-heel attempt in the 56th minute which was grabbed by Garcia, while Patterson had saves on Roach in the 59th minute and Isabella Carr in the 62nd minute.
Patterson made her best save of the match as she tipped a shot ticketed for the top middle by Crisci in the 71st minute. On the ensuing corner kick, Megan Brody served the ball to the box where Bacon found it and beat Patterson to tie the match at 70:57.
Watson nearly restored the Tusculum lead in the 75th minute, but her blast from 30 yards ricocheted off the frame. A stop by Garcia on Ellenburg in the 78th minute and a chip over the bar from Crisci in the 83rd minute were the last shots for either team in regulation.
In overtime, King struck quickly as Maggie Danroth played the ball from the back end to Anya Gross at midfield, who quickly found a breaking Winters. At the top of the box, Winters shot top right corner past Patterson for the winning goal for the Tornado.
Ellenburg had a game-high six of the Pioneers' 20 shot attempts, with four on goal. Crisci led the Tornado with three shot attempts, with Roach the only King player with more than one shot on target.
Patterson finished the match with six saves for the Pioneers, who had a 7-1 edge in corner kicks in the match. King was whistled for 13 fouls to eight for Tusculum, with the Pioneers flagged three times for offsides.
Tusculum will head to Florida for a pair of matches this coming weekend, starting Friday at 7 p.m. against Tampa.
