The Dux varsity soccer team played with toughness, grit and resiliency as they battled to a 2-2 tie against host Hamilton on their new stadium turf. Hamilton took an early 1-0 lead in the first half off of a free-kick near midfield. A miscommunication and misplayed ball by the Dux resulted in a one on one situation with Dux goalkeeper Ryleigh that did not end well for the Dux. But the Dux would respond off of a set piece. Kylee Winn lofted a driven ball over the Hawkeye back line that bounced just inside the 18 yard box. Josie Bos timed her run perfectly and was able to head the ball off the bounce up and over Hamilton's goalkeeper and into the back of the net. The score was knotted at 1-1 heading into the break. "Right place, right time... We had great movement off the ball before the kick which opened up a lane for Bos. Great ball and great timing resulted in a quality finish."

The Dux cranked up the defensive pressure and had great hold-up play in the midfield to start the second half, which disrupted the timing on the Hawkeye offense. After earning a free-kick just outside the penalty box, Winn sent a curling ball towards the Hawkeye net that was inches too high. A short time later, the Dux earned a corner kick that would give them the lead. Kylee Winn's left footed corner kick bent towards the far post, where Josie Bos slammed it into the back of the net. "Kylee has been playing great balls into the box off of corner kicks the past couple of games. Tonight, we finally had someone in the right spot to capitalize. Bos had a similar play against HC on Monday, but their keeper made a phenomenal point blank save. Tonight, she buried her chance." The Dux held the lead until just under 4 minutes remaining, when the Hawkeyes scored the equalizer off of a rebound. "Farrell stopped the initial shot, but was unable to corral the rebound. We were a step too slow in reacting and they put the ball in the back of the net." 

"We showed some grit and toughness tonight... We preach being proactive, and we did a better job of anticipating in the second half which made a big difference. Our defense played solid and we finished a couple of chances tonight. We continue building momentum as we near the end of the season and into tournament time. Very proud of our effort, energy and execution tonight. Hamilton is a dangerous team - we held our own."

The Dux are 5-6-5 on the season, 2-5-3 in the OK Green.