FARMVILLE, Va. – On a humid, 92-degree day, shorthanded Longwood endured a marathon effort and took Big South rival Charleston Southern to double overtime only to settle for a scoreless draw Saturday afternoon at the Longwood Athletics Complex.
 
Without all-region senior forward Emilie Kupsov and freshman goalkeeper Mary Kate Levush – both out with injuries – the Lancers (3-5-1, 1-1-1 Big South) generated a season-high 30 shots against the Buccaneers (3-5-2, 0-1-2) but came away empty-handed through 110 minutes of action.
 
Longwood put seven of those attempts on target, but Charleston Southern goalkeeper Jazmin Gonzalez found herself well-positioned for each of those en route to seven saves and her second shutout of the season. She dueled Longwood keeper Madison Van Dyke in the marathon stalemate, with Van Dyke racking up four saves for her second consecutive shutout.
 
The game was Longwood's third overtime contest of the season and the team's first draw since battling Charleston Southern to a 2-2 deadlock on Sept. 22, 2018.
 
"We competed at a very high level today," head coach Todd Dyer said. "We defended well enough to earn a shutout. We created more than enough chances to win the game. Now we need to finish the job in the final third. That is what we'll work on in training as we prepare for Radford."
 
The scoring drought for the Lancers was a stark contrast from their last outing, which saw them erupt for a season-high four goals on a season-high 12 shots on goal in a 4-0 road victory over Hampton. The shots kept coming in persistent fashion Saturday but did so without offensive spark plug Kupsov who three days earlier jumpstarted the victory over Hampton with her 20th career goal.
 
Those opportunities came as Longwood spent the majority of the game attacking Charleston Southern's half of the field, but the Buccaneer defense never broke. That backline survived seven shots from junior Kennedy Culbreath, who entered the game tied for the team lead – alongside Kupsov – with four goals.
 
That Charleston Southern backline keyed in on Culbreath in Kupsov's absence, blocking three of her seven shots, including back-to-back attempts in the first overtime. That defensive pressure was widespread as the Buccaneers redirected, deflected and blocked seven Longwood shots alongside Gonzalez's seven saves.
 
Longwood's defensive effort was equally stingy, however, as the vaunted Lancer backline registered its second straight shutout by holding Charleston Southern to just four shots on goal. The Lancer defense, led by 110-minute efforts from junior Carrie Reaver and freshman Tori Gagliardi, allowed only two of those in regulation, which Van Dyke corralled, before allowing two long-range attempts in overtime. Van Dyke hauled in both of those as well to earn her third shutout of the season.
 
The draw is Longwood's first of the season and will be the Lancers' final tune-up before hosting Commonwealth rival and reigning Big South champion Radford in Farmville this Wednesday, Oct. 2, at 7 p.m.
 
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