ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. – Elisabeth Ptacek's first career goal for the St. Bonaventure women's soccer team helped the Bonnies secure a conference point in a 1-1 draw with Richmond Thursday evening at the Marra Athletics Complex. 
 
The hosts took a 1-0 lead in the 67^th minute as Ptacek sent a high-flying shot over the head of the Richmond keeper for her first collegiate goal in her four-year career with the Bonnies.
 
Richmond (4-9-3, 2-6-1 A-10) responded in the 81^st minute with a cross from the far corner finding the foot of Grace Murphy, who put away the equalizer.
 
An evenly matched opening stanza ended in a 0-0 draw at halftime. Both squads tallied four shots in the first 45 minutes, while SBU put two of theirs on target.
 
In the 23^rd minute, Torrie Grant-Clavijo had an open lane to the net but was thwarted by the Spider keeper.
 
Ten minutes later, sophomore Lauren Westwood tested the opposing keeper, sending in a high shot that was saved.
 
Richmond seemed poised to take the lead early in the second half after a scoreless first. The Spiders controlled possession but didn't take their first shot of the period until the 60^th minute. Chiara Gottinger turned away the attempt from the Richmond striker.
 
After two more shots from the Spiders, the Bonnies flipped the momentum and charged into their attacking end. A long ball toward the box found the head of Grant-Clavijo, who passed it back to Ptacek, giving the Bonnies a 1-0 advantage.
 
Gottinger made her fourth save of the contest in the 73^rd minute to keep Bona in front. However, the Spiders knotted the game at one seven minutes later.
 
St. Bonaventure (2-12-3, 1-6-2 A-10) recorded three shots on goal while Gottinger made four saves as they earned their fifth conference point of the season.
  
QUOTES FROM HEAD COACH DONNY GEORGE
"I'm incredibly proud of the team's fight and effort tonight. We knew it would be a battle, and it certainly felt like one. Our goal was to dominate play in the attacking half, and for much of the game, that's exactly what we did."
 
"We were unlucky not to score in the first half, but we felt confident going into the second that we could push on and secure the win. Elisabeth created and finished a fantastic goal from outside the 18, and the message to the team was to close the game out. Unfortunately, Richmond capitalized on a mistake to equalize, and the final minutes were a back-and-forth contest. Overall, I thought we did enough to deserve the win."
 
UP NEXT
The Bonnies conclude the regular season on Sunday as they travel to Loyola Chicago. Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m.
 
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