Hilltoppers' shutout breaks Eagles' four-game run

Nijee Cooper advances the ball against St. Edward's on Oct. 1. Photo by Abby Bellow. — Nijee Cooper advances the ball against St. Edward’s University on Oct. 1. *Photo by Abby Bellow*

St. Edward’s University ended the Eagles’ four-game winning streak after a 4-0-shutout Thursday.

According to junior goalkeeper Evan Helker, a seven-minute window of mistakes put St. Edward’s out of the Eagles’ reach.

“We played well but we lost focus for seven minutes when they scored those three goals,” Helker said.

The Hilltoppers scored in the 20th minute — the only goal of the first half. Despite nearly matching St. Edward’s 19-shot count with 17 of its own, Oklahoma Christian failed to capitalize on any offensive opportunities.

Helker recorded six saves on Thursday, but a seven-minute defensive breakdown for the Eagles saw the addition of three more goals to the Hilltoppers books in the 71st, 72nd and 78th minutes.

Helker said the loss is a disappointment, but the team is already setting its sights on Saturday’s game against Dallas Baptist University.

“We are a better team than that and we will hope to bounce back from this on Saturday,” Helker said.

Oklahoma Christian has the chance to record its 10th win of the season when it hosts Dallas Baptist on noon Saturday.