IUPUI saw its 2-0 lead quickly dissolve in the second half of Sunday’s match against Eastern at Lakeside Field, but was able to find the back of the net one more time late to pick up the 3-2 win.

The Panthers were troubled with fouls for most of the match, but two fouls on IUPUI late in the second half were able to jumpstart an Eastern comeback that was stopped short by a third goal from IUPUI’s Krissy Kirkhoff.

After a scoreless first half, IUPUI got on the board twice with goals from Kirkhoff in the 48th and 57th minute for a 2-0 lead.

Eastern freshman Chloe Gottschalk found an opening in the defense and made a break for the goal, but was fouled inside the box, setting up a penalty kick in the 78th minute.

The Panthers went with last season’s leading scorer, senior Meagan Radloff, to take the penalty. Radloff booted one past IUPUI’s Nicole Kulovitz.

With the score 2-1, Eastern jumped back on the offensive and Radloff sent a ball through the middle to this year’s leading scorer, red-shirt junior Chris Reed. This time it was Reed who was fouled and it was Reed who scored on the ensuing penalty kick.

IUPUI was able to spark a comeback of its own, with Kirkhoff scoring the go-ahead goal in the 82nd minute, just two minutes after Reed’s penalty kick.

For the second straight match, Eastern started red-shirt sophomore Kylie Morgan in goal. She made four saves in the match.

Red-shirt senior Lauren Hoppensteadt left the match early in the first half with a left ankle injury and was unable to return. She left the match on crutches. Eastern head coach Jason Cherry said he did not know Hoppensteadt’s status at the end of the match.

What Cherry did know was that the Eastern women’s soccer team needs to limit its mistakes throughout the match.

“We gotta stop making so many mistakes,” he said. “The problem is, we make mistakes, we don’t execute, and then they counter on our mistakes and they just killed us. We’re shooting ourselves in the foot.”

The Panthers return to action against Wisconsin-Green Bay at 1 p.m. Sept. 14 at Lakeside Field.

Dominic Renzetti can be reached at 581-2812 or dcrenzetti@eiu.edu.