Just when it appeared Prairie View A&M was going to get its first conference win of the season, a former Lady Panther saved the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff.
Sunday’s game, which was senior day for UAPB at the Pumphrey Soccer Complex, ended in a 1-1 draw thanks to UAPB forward Perria Edmond’s late goal.
Edmond, a Prairie View transfer, said it came down to using the last bit of energy she had to finish the game.
“Something just told me, ‘Keep going. Keep going,’” Edmond said. “(Iyanah Hicks) didn’t see me the first time. She didn’t see me the second time. Something just said, ‘Keep going.’ So, I kept going. She crossed, and I was just there.”
Senior forward Hicks took the ball down the left flank in the final seconds of the game. She crossed it into the penalty box, where Edmond was waiting. Her close-range header went over Prairie View goalkeeper Medinat Lawal and fell into the net with 18 seconds remaining in the game.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
First-year UAPB coach Jayme Selph said the Lady Lions (1-11-2, 0-6-1 SWAC) showed the fighting spirit she has been trying to teach them.
“(Edmond’s) a hustler,” Selph said. “She never stops running. Saw her going in there, and I was just, ‘Get anything on it. Get anything on it you can.’ She did, and it’s all I can ask for.”
Edmond’s goal came on her only shot of the game. Leanna Saleh and Brooke Gonzalez had two shots each, with Saleh directing one on target. Janai Perry joined Edmond and Saleh in firing a shot on target, with Lawal saving two of them.
UAPB goalkeeper Makaila Riedel saved five of the six shots on target she faced in the game.
Saleh was a noticeable presence for UAPB in the midfield in the first half, with both of her shot attempts coming from long range. She went down early in the second half with an apparent ankle injury and did not play again.
Prairie View (1-10-4, 0-3-4) took the lead soon after. Nalonie Allgeier took the Lady Panthers’ first corner kick of the game and sent the ball into the box. Keeara Bradley collected the ball, settled it, and directed it into the bottom right corner for the lead 5:34 into the second half.
Selph said the Lady Lions took a few minutes to adjust to playing without Saleh and attributed Prairie View’s goal to it.
“It’s a big loss,” Selph said. “At this stage, anybody going down is a big loss. She is one of our biggest communicators. Our girls stepped up, and they filled shoes, and that’s all I can ask for.”