WASHINGTON, DC --- A defensive standoff between the 2014 Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Championship participants went into double overtime but the Howard women's soccer team came out on the losing side of the match, falling 1-0 to the Prairie View A&M University Lady Panthers on Sunday afternoon at Greene Stadium.

The loss for Howard (7-7, 3-3 SWAC) was the first in three meetings with Prairie View A&M (7-4, 4-1 SWAC) after the reigning SWAC champions defeated the Lady Panthers in Texas last regular season and in Alabama for the 2014 title.

While both teams combined to take 39 shots (with Howard holding a 24-15 edge), neither team was able to create solid, consistent chances during the contest. For Howard, many of their opportunities were thwarted by PVAMU goalkeeper Dominique Dillon, who stopped eight of the Bison's shots. Howard's better attempts that weren't saved by Dillon sailed just over the crossbar or wide of the net.

The difference between earning a hard fought draw and conceding a heartbreaking defeat came less than a minute into the second overtime. Prairie View's Mila Bustos forced senior midfielder Dytria Ruddy into a turnover in the Howard defensive zone and sent a through pass to teammate Alicia Cooper. Cooper was able to dodge Howard goalkeeper Mackenzie Diotte, who was charging up the box, and score the golden goal (101') with a right footed chip shot.

NEXT UP
Howard will take its final regular season road trip of the season next weekend as the Bison take on the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Saturday, October 16 and Grambling State University on Sunday, October 18. HU will go into the weekend in the bottom half the eight-team qualifying field for the 2015 SWAC Tournament with four conference games remaining.