Box Score OMAHA, Neb. - The South Dakota women's soccer team battled Creighton to a deadlock for more than 108 minutes but Kelly Connolly's goal in the closing moments of the second overtime lifted the Bluejays past the Coyotes, 1-0 in nonconference action Sunday in Omaha, Neb.

The Coyotes (0-3-1) gave the defending Missouri Valley Conference champions - and 2011 preseason favorites -- all they could handle during Sunday's contest. To show the improvement South Dakota has displayed - the Coyotes lost to Creighton 4-1 at home last year and 8-0 in 2009.

"Today we took another step in the right direction," South Dakota head coach Mandy Green said. "This was probably the best game we have played so far against a really good Creighton team."

The game was evenly matched, with the Creighton (3-1) holding a slight 13-11 edge in shots. Freshman Mackenzie Viktor (Loveland, Colo.) finished with seven saves for the Coyotes.

Freshman Rebecca Pederson (Waconia, Minn.) led the Coyotes with four shots, while sophomore Jenny Teslow (Sioux Falls, S.D.) had three shots, including one on goal. Junior Erin Bello (Fort Collins, Colo.), sophomore Afton Keiser (Sioux Falls, S.D.) and freshmen Makena Cameron (Cheyenne, Wyo.) and Lauren Bennett (Walton, Ky.) added one apiece.

The Coyotes applied pressure to Creighton in the overtime frames, holding a 6-3 edge in shots, including 4-1 in the first overtime period. The game stayed deadlocked at 0-0 down to the final minutes before Connolly scored the goal.

South Dakota will look to get into the win column at home Friday against North Dakota. Game time is 4 p.m. at the USD Soccer Field.

"We will get after it again on Tuesday in practice and keep working to get better," Green said. "I am very proud of this team. "We have come a long way already but still have a long way to go. It's tough not to have a win yet but we will get there. We will bounce back and use what we've learned to be better prepared for North Dakota on Friday."