WOMEN’S SOCCER TOPS EVANGEL, ADVANCES TO KCAC SEMIFINAL

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Continuing one of the best women's soccer seasons in school history, Avila used two second-half goals to beat Evangel, 2-0, on Tuesday afternoon at The Z.

The win advances Avila to the KCAC Tournament Semifinal, where they will face either Kansas Wesleyan or York on Friday at 7:30 PM in Wichita.

A tightly-contested and scoreless first half paved the way for Avila's two leading goal scorers in the regular season to take over in the second half.

Less than two minutes into the second half, Eagles star freshman Cali Lasater opened the scoring.

Off an Evangel foul, Addison Yinger lined up for a free kick on the far sideline. Yinger's pass rocketed into the box, found Samantha Mendez's foot, which directed  to Cali Lasater, who knocked the ball over the Evangel goalkeeper's head into the back of the net.

Avila held a 1-0 lead in the 48^th minute.

Less than 10 minutes later, Avila came back for more.

Mendez – who picked up an assist on Lasater's opening goal – took a corner kick in the 57^th minute. Mendez's cross into the box found Yinger, who headed it into the back of the net.

Avila held a 2-0 lead with 30 minutes remaining.

They say a two-goal lead is the most dangerous lead in soccer. That did not apply to the Eagles on Tuesday.

The Avila defense held strong for the final half hour of the match, only allowing three Evangel shots for the remainder of the game.

The Eagles kept it a 2-0 game to get the win and extend their winning streak to six games.

The win marked Avila's eighth shutout of the season and third in the last four matches.

Avila will play in the KCAC semifinals on Friday night at 7:30 PM at the Stryker Sports Complex in Wichita against the winner of Tuesday's Kansas Wesleyan-York match.