GREENEVILLE, Tenn.  –  No. 23 Nova Southeastern twice pulled to within one, but never quite managed to get over the hump, as Tusculum held off the Sharks 3-2 in the season opener for both sides Friday night in Greeneville, Tenn. The Sharks fell behind 2-0 just 12 minutes into the match, giving the Pioneers just enough breathing room to spring the eventual upset.  

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Score: Tusculum 3, Nova Southeastern 2
Records: Tusculum (1-0), Nova Southeastern (0-1)
Location: Greeneville, Tenn./Pioneer Field
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HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Awarded their second corner kick of match less than eight minutes in, the Pioneers grabbed the early 1-0 edge after Kenzie Ellenburg headed in the bending ball from Nicole McMillen.
• Roughly four minutes later, the Sharks found themselves in trouble once again, as Tusculum earned yet another corner kick opportunity. This time, however, it was Ellenburg on the assisting end, linking up with Emma Macdonald for the second goal in the early going.
• Looking for some sort of momentum, Adanna Edwards nearly cut the deficit in half in the 20^th minute, yet the Sharks caught an unlucky break when her left-footed shot ricocheted off the cross bar and out of danger.
• The much-needed swing eventually arrived, though, in the 41^st minute. Given plenty of room to roam, Hannah Christophe raced down the middle of the field and delivered a pass from the top of the box to Anetra Byfield, who drilled a right-footed strike under the outstretched arms of the Tusculum keeper to trim the margin to 2-1 just before the break.
• An odd sequence in the opening minutes of the second half set the Pioneers up with an indirect free kick just five yards from the goal. Without much of a chance from that close, Sonja Ballmert beat the Shark defense to push Tusculum back in front by two scores.
• In the 57^th minute, Nova Southeastern answered the call right back. On the receiving end of a feed from Emma Heikkila, Alexys Nowak found herself one-on-one with the keeper and converted from the edge of the six-yard box to narrow the gap to 3-2.
• A Christophe shot off the left post was followed up by Heikkila in the 73^rd minute for what appeared to be the equalizer. However, the offside flag was raised on the play, negating the score.
• Searching for one last offensive surge, Heikkila created another scoring chance late in the 87^th minute. A key, two-handed save in traffic by the Tusculum keeper, though, would turn the Sharks away and preserve the victory for the Pioneers.

BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:

• Byfield's first-half score came less than five minutes into her first career appearance with the Sharks.

 
STATS OF THE NIGHT:

• Following her first goal of 2018, Nowak has now recorded eight overall in 28 career starts.
• Despite trailing 2-1 at halftime, Nova Southeastern held a 10-4 advantage in shots.
• Christophe and Heikkila accounted for both Nova Southeastern assists Friday after combining for six a year ago.
• Heikkila registered six of the Sharks' 13 shots on the night, four more than any other player.

 
UP NEXT:
Nova Southeastern will continue its early-season road trip on Saturday when it heads to Bristol, Tenn. for a 1 p.m. kickoff against King. For complete coverage of the action, visit NSUSharks.com or follow the Sharks on Twitter @NSU_WSoccer.