KENT, Ohio – Toledo's season came to an end with a 4-2 loss at Kent State in Mid-American Conference Tournament quarterfinals action on Sunday.

No. 6 seed Toledo scored first and held a 2-1 lead but the No. 3 seeded Golden Flashes scored three late goals to advance to the semifinals of the tournament. Toledo ended its season 10-6-4 record, its best regular-season mark since 2011.

"It was a tough loss with great resiliency by both teams," head coach TJ Buchholz said. "It was a great back and forth game. Kent found a way to pull it out at the end. There was such hard resiliency for our team, just battling for 90 minutes, and I am just proud of them. I'm proud of our seniors for all they have given to our program."

Toledo sophomore Ellie Pool opened the scoring at the 15-minute mark. Freshman defender McKenna Schultz took free kick near midfield and the ball bounced around before senior midfielder Claire Cahalan passed the loose ball near the top of the box for Pool, who it drilled past the KSU goalkeeper. Four minutes later, Kent's State's Siena Stambolich scored from 18 yards out to tie the game 1-1 before the end of the first half.

Senior defender Betsy Lueck scored her first career goal from 20 yards out on the left side to put her team back on top, 2-1, at the 75-minute mark. But it was all Kent State from that point out. Moments later, the Golden Flashes tied the game at 2-2 when Giulia Giovanazzi headed the ball into the top left corner of the net off a corner kick. Kent State was awarded a penalty kick at the 82-minute mark, with Karly Hellstrom's slipping her shot past UT Goalkeeper Emma Boutorwick in the right bottom corner. The Golden Flashes ended any hopes of a Rocket comeback with a final goal with less than two minutes remaining.

Though disappointed with the loss, Buchholz said he was pleased with the progress of his team this season. 

"We were picked 11th (in the preseason coaches poll) and we made the tournament, won 10 games, and we had a season that nobody expected," said Buchholz. "Our team expected to do well today. We had to come on the road, and we battled. That's what it takes. Now our players know and understand what this moment looks like, and hopefully we can learn from this experience and move forward. We had an awesome year, we're not going to let this loss today crush our sprits because we shouldn't even have been here based on the preseason poll."

Kent State (12-4-3)  will play No. 2 seeded Ohio (11-4-2, 7-1-3 MAC) in the MAC semifinals on Thursday, Nov. 4. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. in Bowling Green, Ohio.

GOALS AND KEY MOMENTS

• 6' | Sophomore Emma Boutorwick (rifght) recorded her 100th career save from a shot off the right post by Ken State's defender Keyosha Donkor
• 15' | GOAL Sophomore Ellie Pool was set up by senior Claire Cahalan and freshman McKenna Schultz at the top of the box. Pool drilled the shot past Kent State's goalie Sarah Melen to take the 1-0 lead.
• 19' | GOAL Kent State's Siena Stambolich took a shot from the 18-yard line and tie the game 1-1.
• 22' | A loose ball rolled to the top of the goal line, but sophomore forward Caylee Jozefov was there to save the ball before it crossed the line and keep the score even.
• 72' | Kent State's Lauryn Arruda took a shot from a fast break down the right side, but
• 74' | GOAL Senior Betsy Lueck scored her first career goal from the left side to put the Rockets back on top 2-1.
• 78' | GOAL Kent State' Giulia Giovanazzi scored off a header from a corner kick to tie the game 2-2.
• 82' | GOAL Kent State was awarded a penalty kick, and Karly Hellstrom's got past Emma Boutorwick in the right bottom corner.
• 88' | GOAL Kent State's Cameron Shedenhelm chased a ball down the left field and found the back of the net to put the Golden Flashes up 2-4.

STATS, NOTES & NUMBERS

• Sunday's match was Toledo's first appearance in the MAC Tournament since its 2017 championship season.
• Pool's goal was her seventh of the season. Lueck's goal was her first career goal.
• Emma Boutorwick marked her name in the program record books for her 100th career save on Kent State's first shot if the game. She finished the season with 82 saves and now has 105 in her career.