In the last two games, IU women’s soccer has flipped a switch offensively, outscoring its opponents 7-1 after having scored just two goals in its first four games of the season.
It was the second win in a row for the suddenly red hot Hoosiers, who won a close game thanks to sophomore defender Oliwia Wos’s last-minute goal to give the Hoosiers a 2-1 lead with three minutes to spare.
The game was also the Hoosiers' second straight game with over 20 shots, finishing with 24 to UT Martin’s eight.
IU’s win got them back to 3-3 on the year, and with Wos’s last-minute goal reversing the trend of the Hoosiers surrendering the game-winning goal late in games.
The Hoosiers' first half was uneventful on the scoreboard despite dominating once again in shot totals for the half.
Their best chance of the half came around the 10-minute mark, when senior midfielder Chandra Davidson sent a shot just wide of the goal after a scramble on a corner kick.
The Hoosiers were leading in shots 7-1 with just 15 minutes to go, but the Skyhawks struck first in the 31st minute. Skyhawk senior forward Nicole Collins got a shot past IU junior goalkeeper Bethany Kopel to put UT Martin ahead 1-0.
At the half, IU held a 10-5 shot advantage, but once again struggled to finish off scoring chances.
The second half proved to be a different story for the Hoosiers. IU managed to get 14 shots off and scored two goals in the process.
The first of those came just five minutes after the second half began. Freshman midfielder Avery Lockwood found the back of the net once again from distance, to tie the game 1-1. The goal was Lockwood’s third in two gamesand third this season as she moved into a tie with Davidson for the team lead.
Plenty of chances abounded for the Hoosiers, but as the game wound down to the final 10 minutes, the score remained tied 1-1. After back-to-back losses in which they lost by just one goal within the final 15 minutes of a game, Wos made sure that it would not end that way again for the Hoosiers.
A ball was cleared right to her, standing just outside the penalty box. Wos sent a low shot that hardly got off the ground into the bottom right corner to put the Hoosiers ahead in the 87th minute.
It was the first goal as a Hoosier for Wos who transferred from Wake Forest University this past season.
The goal ensured the Hoosiers first winning streak of the season, and with one game remaining before Big Ten play, opened the door for the Hoosiers to enter their conference slate with a winning record.
The final nonconference test will come against an undefeated University of Kentucky squad at 2 p.m Sunday from Lexington, Kentucky.
