Butler falls 2-1 in season opener at No. 20 Northern OK-Tonkawa

Butler falls 2-1 in season opener at No. 20 Northern OK-Tonkawa

TONKAWA, Okla. — Butler soccer had an eight-game winning streak against Northern Oklahoma-Tonkawa snapped with a 2-1 season-opening road loss to the 20th-ranked Mavericks on Monday.

The second-ranked Grizzlies (0-1 overall) fell behind 2-0 on a pair of goals from Tonkawa sophomore forward BreAnn Tolleson, who scored her first goal in less than five minutes into the contest. Tolleson would add her second goal two minutes into the second half with a chip shot from the left side over Butler goalkeeper Jami Reichenberger.

Butler avoided the shutout when Lexi Clark scored on a Lauren Allan corner kick in the 84th minute.

The Grizzlies held an 11-5 shots on goal advantage and a 3-1 edge in corner kicks, but failed to convert on numerous opportunities.

Next up for Butler will be a road contest at No. 1 Eastern Florida State on Friday. Kickoff from Melbourne, Fla., is at 6 p.m. The Grizzlies will also play Brevard (Fla.) in Melbourne on Sunday at 10 a.m.

NOTES: With the loss, Butler is now 11-3-1 in season openers, with a 2-3 record in the last five openers... Butler drops to 12-3-1 against the Mavericks in the season series and 6-2-0 in games played in Tonkawa... Prior to Monday's win, Northern Oklahoma's last victory against Butler came in 2002. The Mavericks forced a 4-4 tie in Butler's 2007 season opener, which was Adam Hunter's first game as Butler head coach.