Wildcats Strike Twice in Final Minutes to Complete 3-2 Thriller at Tabor

HILLSBORO, Kan. - Stella Jameson's goal in the closing minutes completed a wild finish in Baker women's soccer's first road match of 2025 as the Wildcats scored twice in the final six minutes to complete a 3-2 comeback victory at Tabor on Wednesday night.

After falling behind in the first half, BU scored the first of two equalizers midway through the second half before the Bluejays regained the lead in the 84th. The Wildcats answered Tabor's late strike with two goals in a three-minute span to flip what looked like a late heartbreaker into a 3-2 road win.

Baker outshot Tabor 15-9, including an 11-shot second half that produced all three goals. The Wildcats also held an 8-3 edge in corner kicks, with six coming after halftime.

Tabor struck first in the 17th minute on a long, bending shot from nearly 25 yards out to grab hold of a 1-0 lead that they carried over deep into the second half before Baker started to find its rhythm offensively.

It was a Bluejays blunder that woke up the stagnant Wildcats as forward Darcy Cato intercepted a pass in the Tabor back line and calmly finished for her first goal of the year. Cato, a senior from Kansas City, Mo., now has five points through four matches with three assists to go along with her goal from Wednesday.

The dramatic ending in Hillsboro, Kan., began with a breakaway goal from the hosts that looked to play spoiler to BU's night, but the Wildcats responded quickly and furiously to stun the Bluejays.

First, a cross from Cato resulted in Naomi Harris-Hyche firing off a laser that was deflected by the Tabor goalie right into the awaiting boot of Rihanna Blanchard, who knocked in the rebound to tie the match at 2-2 in the 85th minute.

Then, barely a minute after helping tie the match, Harris-Hyche ignited a long run down the far flank to get behind the Bluejays defense and sneak a ball over to a sliding Jameson for the thrilling game-winner.

Harris-Hyche, a freshman from Olathe, Kan., had a big impact throughout the match and was a driving piece for both of BU's final two goals, finishing the match with an assist on Jameson's goal.

For Jameson, it was her second straight game with a goal after she also delivered BU's final goal in its comeback against Ottawa on Friday. Blanchard, who has been a nice spark since coming over from the women's basketball team, scored her second goal of the season with both strikes coming on a second-half equalizer.

With the three goals tonight, the Wildcats have now scored at least one goal in three of their first four matches, increasing their second-half production by one goal in each consecutive outing. They scored a pair of goals in the second-half comeback against the Braves and had one in the match against Mid-America Christian during the first week of the season.

The result tonight also marked the first career victory for first-year head coach Sean McAlister, who came over to lead the women's squad after serving as an assistant for the Baker men's soccer team.

Closing out its non-conference slate with back-to-back results, Baker opens up the Heart of America Athletic Conference season with a home match against No. 13 MidAmerica Nazarene on Saturday, Sept. 6 at 5 p.m. at Hartley Field.

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