Even in a game they dominated, the Lumberjacks couldn't find a way to win.

After outshooting Evansville (Ind.) by a 28-4 tally at Lumberjack Stadium on Sunday, the NAU soccer team (0-6-2) will continue searching for its first win after its double-overtime tie against the Aces (1-5-3).

"We weren't able to capitalize on our opportunities," said senior midfielder Sam Monahan, who led the Jacks with seven shots. "We're just trying to stay positive right now."

After two consecutive 110-minute games that ended in ties, staying positive has grown harder for the Jacks. They are frustrated with their so-far winless 2011 campaign after taking the Big Sky Conference regular season title last year.

"We know we shouldn't be 0-6-2 at this point in the season," NAU coach Andre Luciano said. "We dominated that game. We just didn't finish."

That said, they're not about to give up. The Jacks poured in enough shots to turn Saturday's match into a rout but each attack was off the mark or blocked. Part of that was tired legs, Luciano said and certainly not from a lack of effort.

"They have a sense of urgency to win a game," Luciano said. "I don't have a bad team; I just have a young team; I have an inexperienced team -- despite the fact that we have 13 seniors. Not a lot of those players have played big minutes for us over the past couple years, they had to step into new roles. I'll take the blame as the coach. My players are working hard; we're just unlucky right now."

Although NAU missed several chances by sailing the ball too high or too wide, there were a few instances where it bounced off the goal post or Evansville goalkeeper Chaviel Harrison had to make a leaping save. Despite the missed shots, there was still plenty to like about the Jacks' second straight tie -- namely the defense.

"I look at the positives. Defensively, we've done a better job the last two games. We allowed four shots in this game," Luciano said. "Considering what we've had to deal with the past couple weeks and the amount of goals we've given up, these are all positives."

Sophomore keeper Lauren Weaver had three saves in match and never had much of an attack pressed against her thanks to the Jacks' stifling defense. Weaver also helped fuel a few scoring chances with her booming kicks down the field. Diane Buzzard, a Flagstaff High graduate and the Daily Sun's 2011 Soccer Player of the Year, made her NAU debut in the second half and totaled 25 minutes.

Although Saturday was another missed opportunity for a victory, Luciano isn't stressing the importance of the win column just yet. He's waiting for the conference season as several Big Sky teams are struggling in non-conference games as well.

"People have to understand that this is a completely different team," Luciano said. "Between injuries and players that have graduated -- we have eight new starters on the field -- this is a work-in-progress for us."

There are signs of that progress, for sure, but the Jacks are still working one crucial element: finding the back of the net.

"Every time you go out there you want to put that goal away," senior forward Jenna Samora said. "You have to move forward to the next one once you miss.

"The fact that we had the opportunities is a step in the right direction."

Jacob May can be reached at jmay@azdailysun.com or 556-2257. Follow him on Twitter @JacobBMay