No. 21 WSU soccer (2-0) was nearly held at home by the visiting Grand Canyon University in a tight match, but was finally able to break through in the opening minutes of overtime to win the game 1-0. The Cougs dominated the encounter but were frustrated by a resolute GCU defense throughout regulation time.

WSU opened the game Sunday in the same hungry and aggressive manner it did against Seattle University on Friday, pushing the ball up the field to mount the pressure on GCU. Junior forward Morgan Weaver, who scored two goals against the Redhawks, once again led the line and fired several shots at the goal within the opening 10 minutes of the game.

The Cougs kept attacking for the duration of the opening half, resulting in nine shots and seven corner kicks before the first 45 minutes were up. GCU graduate student goalkeeper Abby Burton was the difference for the visitors, finishing the half with three key saves to deny WSU the opening goal.

As the second half began, GCU found its feet and started to find chances of its own. The Cougs still dominated the majority of possession, but the visitors’ newfound confidence allowed them to bite back and force senior WSU defenders Grace Hancock and Maddy Haro to make some hard tackles in defense of the goal.

The Cougs were soon able to attack GCU once more and nearly found the back of the net when freshman forward Molly Myers took a shot and beat the goalkeeper but was denied by the post in the 71st minute.

For the last 10 minutes, the Cougs pushed higher and higher up the field, desperate to find the goal and dispatch the visitors. Weaver and Myers, among other Cougars, took several shots to increase WSU’s shot count on the game to 24.

Finally, the clock hit 90 minutes and with the score tied at 0-0 the game went into overtime — one that would prove short-lived. The Cougs once again pushed up the field and within two minutes the hosts scored the long-awaited goal. Myers found the ball in the box following Haro’s short cross and scored her first career goal, giving WSU the win.

The team will play University of Iowa 2 p.m. Friday at Elizabeth Lyle Robbie Stadium in Minnesota.