WAIPAHU, O'ahu – The Hawai'i women's soccer team dropped its opening match of the OUTRIGGER No Ka Oi, falling 4-2 in a back-and-forth shootout with Northern Arizona Thursday night at Waipi'o Soccer Stadium.   
 
The two teams traded scores in a frenetic first 10 minutes, with the 'Bows jumping out to 1-0 and 2-1 leads with NAU responding quickly each time before taking a 3-2 lead in the 18th minute.
 
Krista Peterson put away her first goal of the season to put the Rainbow Wahine on the board in the fifth minute, finishing off a cross to the left side of the goal by Tatum Porter. NAU equalized just 14 seconds later, but Porter put Hawai'i back in front in the eighth minute with her first score of the year.
 
The Lumberjacks quickly equalized again, this time just a minute and a half later to make it 2-2, then went ahead at the 17:42 mark when Avery Ott scored her second goal of the match, making it 3-2 where it stood until the half.
 
UH had chances to equalize down the stretch, out-shooting NAU 11-6 after halftime but couldn't put away the game-tying goal. In the 83rd minute, Ott put the Lumberjacks up two with her third goal of the match, marking the first hat trick by a UH opponent since Sept. 14, 2024 (Rebecca Wilson, Cal State Fullerton).
 
Porter turned in her first career match with a goal and an assist while Peterson found the back of the net for the first time this year after missing all of the 2024 season with an injury. UH also tallied 20 shots for the second time in the last three matches while its 11 shots on goal were a season high.
 
The Rainbow Wahine close out their four-match homestand with the final day of the OUTRIGGER No Ka Oi Tournament Sunday vs. California Baptist at 2:30 p.m.