Box Score After nearly 96 minutes of missed opportunities, Colorado College paid a dear price on Friday.

Sophomore forward Kaitlyn Atkins found the upper right corner of the net with 4:05 left in the first overtime, lifting the University of Memphis to a 2-1 sudden-death victory over CC in a Conference USA women's soccer battle of Tigers at Stewart Field.

The loss snapped a 15-game (12-0-3) undefeated streak for Colorado College on its home field, dating back to a 2-1 defeat to Utah State University more than a year ago, on Aug. 28, 2011. CC dropped to 7-3-4 overall and 2-2-1 in league play.

First-place Memphis, now 9-3 overall, improved to 5-0 in the conference when Atkins' sharp-angle shot from the right side fooled freshman keeper Kate Scheele just moments after the visitors thwarted a scoring threat in their own end.

“I told the kids that I wasn't disappointed in them, that I was disappointed for them,” said CC head coach Geoff Bennett. “The ball was at their (Memphis') end of the field for the whole second half and most of overtime. They broke out on the counterattack once in the first half and once in [overtime], and that was the difference in the game. Our kids deserved better.”  

Memphis grabbed an early lead less than two minutes into the match when Atkins lobbed a long lead pass to C-USA scoring leader Cristabel Oduro, who sprinted past the defense to chase it down and convert from just outside the six-yard box. The goal was Oduro's 10th of the season.

Junior midfielder Madison Whitehead pulled CC even midway through the second half, on a rising direct kick from 20 yards away that appeared to deflect off a Memphis defender in the wall with 18:44 left in regulation. And, by all rights, Whitehead's fifth tally of the season should have been the game winner.

Sophomore midfielder Jessie Ayers had a golden opportunity to tie the contest with 9:10 remaining in the first half, but was robbed point blank by Memphis goalkeeper Christa Strickland. The diving save, one of three in the match by Strickland, ignited a three-minute span in which Colorado College would be awarded seven corner kicks. The home Tigers failed to convert on a season single-game high of 11 corners overall for the half, and finished with a total of 15 in the game.  

“I'm proud of their effort, proud of the energy they showed in getting back into the game,” Bennett said of his players. “We've still got plenty of work to do, particularly on our set pieces.You can't get 15 corner kicks and not have anything to show for it. We need to take advantage of those opportunities. But it's still a little bit of a crime. The kids deserved better than to lose today.”

Colorado College out-shot Memphis, which finished with seven corner kicks and 12 fouls to CC's three, by an 11-9 margin overall. Scheele matched Strickland's three saves.