The University of Arkansas women's soccer team managed to wrestle away a 1-0 win from visiting University of Missouri-Kansas City on Sunday, but it might have been a Pyrrhic victory at best.
Just a few minutes after senior Ashleigh Ellenwood scored her fifth goal in six games to put the Razorbacks ahead in the first half, the senior heart-and-soul leader hobbled off the field with an apparent leg injury and did not return.
Ellenwood scored at the 7:22 mark of the first half with an assist from Katie Moore, who had stolen the ball from a UMKC defender and hit a cross to Ellenwood in front of the goal. Ellenwood was injured in an apparent noncontact play just about five minutes later. After the trainers examined her right knee, she was helped to the locker room.
"We just don't know how bad it is right now," Arkansas coach Colby Hale said. "We'll get it looked and get treatment and we can only hope for the best right now."
Ellenwood is fourth in all-time scoring for the Razorbacks and a two-time all-SEC selection.
"She's a great player for us and if she is out for a while, we're obviously going to have to have some people step up," Hale said.
Arkansas (4-3) didn't get much offensive push before or after Ellenwood went out against the Division II Kangaroos (5-2).
The Razorbacks had eight shots on goal. A second half goal that would have made it 2-0 was waved off by a penalty.
Arkansas goalkeeper Cameron Carter played the whole 90 minutes and have five saves. Carter tipped away a nice shot by UMKC with just about a minute to play or the game might have ended in a tie.
"It was a win, and it's hard to win college soccer games," Hale said. "That's about all I can say about it. It wasn't a very good effort and we have a lot of work to do."
Arkansas opened SEC play this past Friday with a 1-0 loss to Tennessee.
The Razorbacks hosts Kansas on Wednesday in another nonconference game and return to SEC play at home against Mississippi State.
Sports on 09/14/2015