ALTON – Belleville West defeated Alton 4-2 in a penalty shootout after their Southwestern Conference match ended in a 1-1 draw on Thursday afternoon at Piasa Motor Fuels Field.
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Sarah Foley gave West the lead in the 22nd minute, but the Redbirds equalized in the 56th minute, as Alaina Nasello scored off an indirect free kick to draw Alton level at 1-1.
Calista Cox twice almost gave the Redbirds a winner late in the second half, but her effort in the 66th minute hit off the woodwork, and another chance in the 74th minute went barely over the top.
Regulation play ended even, forcing 20 minutes of extra time, but neither team were able to score, forcing the shootout, as per Southwestern Conference rules.
Calista Cox and Nasello each converted their kicks, but Grace Cox’s shot hit off the crossbar in the third round, and Maroon goalie Jessica Brown stopped Megan Zini’s fourth round kick, which allowed Courtney Vollmer to score in the fifth round to clinch the win for the Maroons.
Alton falls to 7-6-0 and next plays on Tuesday against Oakville at home on Friday, followed by a conference match against O’Fallon. Both matches kick off at 4:30 p.m.