MILWAUKEE – The Milwaukee women's soccer team dominated the match from start to finish Saturday night, but needed a 106^th-minute header from Rachel Phillpotts to escape with a 2-1 victory over Purdue Fort Wayne at Engelmann Stadium in double-overtime.
 
The Panthers (10-1, 5-0 Horizon League) put up stunning advantages in shots and possession against the Mastodons (3-5-4, 2-3 Horizon League), but could not pull out the decision until Phillpotts knocked in her third goal of the season at the 105:05 mark to end it.
 
"Three points are three points. I give our group a ton of credit … we give up an uncharacteristic goal and then respond with a great goal," head coach Troy Fabiano said. "I will give them credit for that. We had possession [Panthers ended the game with 65%] and kept the ball well. And sometimes in soccer you have to catch a break – Schill hits the post, we hit the crossbar, it felt like we are a little off on our set pieces, and the ball didn't bounce our way tonight."
 
When all was said-and-done, MKE owned glaring advantages of 36-to-8 in shots, 10-to-2 in shots on goal, 7-to-1 in corner kicks, as well as holding 65 percent of possession in the contest. But Purdue Fort Wayne made them earn it in the end, with Phillpotts heading in a serve from near the sideline off the foot of Rafferty Kugler, watching it find the back of the net after getting knocked off her feet to set off the on-field celebration. Lesley Kiesling also picked up an assist on the winner, playing the ball off to Kugler to start the combination.
 
"Fort Wayne did a good job getting numbers behind the ball and were difficult to break down; I just felt like we kept the ball and couldn't catch a break tonight," Fabiano said. "But we still get three points and you're happy with that. When you can get three points and don't play your best, you take it and move on."
 
Scoreless at the break despite a commanding 12-to-4 advantage in shots, the Panthers found themselves trailing just 27 seconds into the second period on a miscue. Isabelle Wissell played a ball from distance into the box, with Elaina LaMacchia charging off her line. The ball took a huge hop off the slick turf and bounced over her head, trickling across the goal line before it could be knocked away.
 
That was enough to wake up the Panthers, finding the equalizer just a few minutes later. This time it was Kat Van Booven, slotting in a combination of passes at the far post to make it 1-1 at the 50:14 mark. Mackenzie Schill and Taylor Hattori picked up assists on the play.
 
It was Schill who nearly made it 2-1 in the 70^th minute, cracking a shot from the wing off the left post. Less than a minute later, Brooke Parnello played a give-and-go with Schill, whizzing a one-timer just over the top of the crossbar.
 
Schill's attempt off the post was the second close call of the match for MKE, which also saw Kiesling crack one off the crossbar early on, just missing in the 15^th minute.
 
Kiesling totaled a team-high nine of the squad's 36 shots on the night, with Schill accounting for seven and Jelena Sever five. The 36 shots marked the highest total since putting up 37 against Chicago State in September of 2016. LaMacchia finished with just one save on the evening but still picked up the victory.
 
Up next, Horizon League play continues with two matches, starting with a Thursday visit to IUPUI. Game time against the Jaguars is set for 5 p.m. CST.