MISSOULA, Mont. – A late penalty decision squandered the Vandals' hopes at a road upset, with Idaho (5-6-2, 2-1-1) tying Montana (1-6-4, 0-1-2), 1-1, on Sunday afternoon in Missoula.
"We responded well," said head coach
Jeremy Clevenger. "That was my message to the team, after a tough loss you have to respond, and we were the better team for the majority of the game, against a good Montana team.
"We were trying to see it out there at the end, but we gave up the late penalty. We have to be smarter in those areas. But we played well on the road, it's tough to go on the road in this conference and get a result."
Claire Johnson picked up a soft clearance from the Grizzlies early in the second half and appeared to try a shot from long range. The Montana defense got in front of it, but the deflection found the feet of
Myah Merino who slipped in past the defense and found the back of the net for her third in the last four games.
"Myah was awesome today," said Clevenger. "Her work rate, her runs in behind, her 1-v-1 attacking, she caused a lot of problems. I was really happy to see her get a goal today.
"She's just getting more comfortable in the offense and what we're asking her to do. But she's coming along at the right time."
Montana leveled the score in the 88
th minute on a penalty kick.
The Vandals return home for a single game next week, with Eastern Washington coming to the Dome on Sunday. Check back with GoVandals.com this week for more information.
"It's a long week, so we can do a few things to get better," Clevenger added. "Recover, get healthy and prepare for Eastern Washington. It's a bit of a rivalry game for us, so we have to be ready to go. Right now it's just about getting healthy and continuing this momentum."
Fans can stay up-to-date on all things Idaho soccer by following the team on Twitter and Instagram, @VandalsSoccer, or on Facebook by searching Idaho Vandals Women's Soccer.
For more information on Idaho Athletics, visit GoVandals.com. Fans can also find Idaho on Twitter and Instagram, @Idaho_Vandals, or on Facebook by searching Idaho Vandals.
