The Shippensburg University women's soccer team opened their road schedule with a draw against regional rivals No. 5 Shepherd in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division contest at the Shepherd Soccer Complex, 1-1.
 
Shippensburg (1-0-2, 0-0-2 PSAC East) took the initial lead via a first-half goal from sophomore forward Lannah Werynski and held off a furious Shepherd attack in the second half to earn a valuable road point against the defending conference champions.
 
Shepherd (1-0-1, 1-0-1) amassed a total of 30 shots, including 17 in the second half. Twelve of those shots were on target. Redshirt-junior goalkeeper Kirstin Brown collected a season-high 10 saves in the Shippensburg goal.
 
Werynski's tally came in the sixth minute. Her pressure forced a Shepherd turnover near midfield, igniting a quick SU counterattack. Senior midfielder Ryleigh Cook collected the loose ball in the center of the park and sent a ball forward that sprung Werynski on a breakaway.
 
Werynski displayed composure on the ball by lifting a shot on the dead sprint past the Shepherd goalkeeper, resulting in the early lead.
 
Shepherd forward Reagan Ackermann scored the equalizer in the 22nd minute, successfully avoiding three Shippensburg defenders on a foray into the box, then surprising Brown with a quick toe-poke finish.
 
Shippensburg later spent the majority of the second 45 minutes in its own defensive half.
 
The nerve-wracking second half ended with a wild final few minutes. Junior forward Ashley Hughes appeared to time her run correctly on a Shippensburg counterattack in search of a late winner, but the run – which would have sent her alone on the keeper – was whistled for offsides.
 
The Rams were awarded a free kick just outside the box in the final moments of the match. Ackerman delivered a howitzer that banged off the crossbar and pinballed in the box for several seconds before it was cleared.
 
It was the second shot that rattled off the crossbar of the Shippensburg goal in the half.
 
Shippensburg has a conference bye Saturday and returns to action Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. against Bloomsburg at David See Field.