ST. PAUL, Minn. - Concordia-St. Paul soccer (2-2-1, 0-0-1 NSIC) battled to a 1-1 draw with the Winona State Warriors (1-1-2, 0-0-1 NSIC) in the NSIC conference opener at Sea Foam Stadium on Friday night.
 
CSP will return to action next Sunday to host the No. 8 Minnesota State Mavericks. Action is scheduled for 1 p.m. from Sea Foam Stadium.
 
Following the match, Head Coach Steve Bellis stated, "I think we were a little disappointed in the first half to be honest because we didn't quite figure out the speed of play and their intensity." He added, "All credit to them. They came out and scored really fast and scored a really good goal right off the bat, but I thought we responded really well and showed a lot of character in the second half to bounce back."
 
"We got the ball down and played. I thought Winona to be honest was a little scrappy, but we decided to get the ball down and be that team that wanted to play." Bellis concluded with, "I was proud of the team on the way that we bounced back and showed a lot of character, and we are looking forward to Mankato on Sunday."
 
Tonight's conference opener marks the first time that the two teams have played to a draw. In the last 10 matchups between the Golden Bears and the Warriors since 2013, CSP holds a 5-4-1 advantage.
 
Senior Katie Anderson led the Golden Bears with her second goal of the season to extend her career goal total to 24, which ranks fourth in CSP history. The conference leader in both shots and shots on goal finished with a team-leading four shots in the match.
 
Sophia Pawlyshyn added her second assist of the season in tonight's contest. The Chanhassen, Minnesota native moved into a tie for fifth all-time in assists with Amanda Olsen (2011-12) as both Golden Bears have 14.
 
Kayla Matuzak (1-0-1) made her second start in goal for the Golden Bears. The sophomore goalkeeper collected a career-best five saves in the match.
 
Tori Miller remains to be a leader on the defensive side of the pitch for CSP as she brings her minute total to a perfect 360 this season. Belle Abruzzo is the other CSP defender that went the full 90 minutes, the first time for her in her career.
 
Winona State had the upper hand in the first half after outshooting the Golden Bears 8-2 with a trio of shots on goal. They were able to jump out to an early lead after Abigail Williams was able to find the net off a well-placed pass from Madyson Dye in the fifth minute.
 
However, the Golden Bears responded with the equalizer in the 54th minute after Pawlyshyn was able to find Anderson in the box to head in the shot. Neither team could pull away in the second as they played to a hard fought 90-minute draw.