Kearney, Neb.  – Senior Jasmine Beaulieu scored early in the second half to lift Fort Hays State to 1-0 win over Nebraska Kearney Friday night in Kansas.

With the setback, the Lopers (4-10-3, 1-8-1) see its postseason chances come to an end. The Tigers, ranked eighth in the Central Region, improve to 9-5-3 (6-3-1) and remain in the hunt for an NCAA Tournament berth.

Back in September, UNK handed the rival Tigers a 1-0 overtime setback in non-league action. Tonight, the teams had to battle each other and temperatures that hovered in the high 20's.

Over the first 45 minutes, the teams combined for three shots, none on goal, with UNK fighting off six Tiger corner kicks. Four of the corners came in the final seven minutes with the Lopers lone corner coming at the five minute mark.

Early in the second half, Lincoln junior Tori Weber saw a shot bang off the post and another sail high. The Tigers quickly countered as true freshman Olympia Katsouridis fired off two shots but Omaha junior keeper Ali Hirschman stopped them both.

However, in the 55th minute, Katsouridis and Australian senior Eden Stoddard assisted on Beaulieu's second goal of the fall. Beaulieu took a quick pass from Stoddard in the box and went to the far right post to score.

UNK's final chance at overtime came when Kansas freshman Alex Dayton lined up for a corner in the 82nd minute. But, the Tigers fought that off to record its fourth home win of the year.

"We knew we had to win this game so with 15 minutes left we went for it and threw one of our center backs up top. It caused them problems and I thought we were going to nick one in but it wasn't meant to be," said Loper head coach Chloe Roberts. "I told the team afterwards that we showed this year we can hang with the top teams in this conference and even beat them. We've played some great soccer which has caused a lot of problems for our opponents."

Katsouridis took six of her team's 14 shots (six on goal) with senior keeper Kristen Thompson earning the win despite not making a save. Dayton and Weber both had two shots apiece for UNK with Hirschman making five saves after the break. Kearney sophomore Allie Prososki was in goal in the first half and didn't need to make a save.

"Some results this year haven't gone our way and that obviously hurt us. This is a very competitive conference and we know that we have to show up and be consistent to get the results we want," said Roberts. "I couldn't be prouder of the way this team bought into the new things we are implementing. We have a strong foundation and are ready to go out on a positive note on Sunday."

UNK is at Emporia State (7-8-2, 3-6-1) on Sunday afternoon to close out the year.