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Bowling Green State University Athletics
Women's Soccer Battles To Tie, 1-1
September 02, 2001 | Women's Soccer
Sept. 2, 2001
EAST LANSING, Mich. - The Bowling Green State University women's soccer team used a Jill Conover goal and a solid defensive performance to post a 1-1 tie at Michigan State University Sunday (Sept. 2). The double-overtime, non-conference match was held at MSU's Old College Field.
With the draw, the Falcons are now 1-0-1 after the season's opening weekend. BGSU defeated UW-Green Bay by a 2-0 score Friday (Aug. 31). MSU, after a Friday win over Western Michigan, is also 1-0-1 on the season.
The Spartans recorded a whopping 29-3 advantage in shots, including a margin of 18-2 in shots on goal. BGSU junior goalkeeper Erika Flanders made a school-record 17 saves in the match.
The Spartans got on the board early, as Andrea Sied headed home a Trisha Kenny cross with just 2:53 elapsed. That would be the only goal allowed by Flanders, however.
Conover, a junior, tied the contest at the 31:24 mark. She gathered a cross by freshman Nikki Pucillo and deposited the ball behind MSU goalkeeper Stacy Heller. Heller had one save in the match.
Michigan State outshot the Falcons by margins of 10-2 in the first half and 10-0 in the second. The Spartans had a 5-0 advantage in the first overtime period and a 4-1 edge in the second OT.
Flanders made seven saves in each half of regulation and three in the 30 minutes of OT.
"We showed just unbelievable character today," said head coach Andy Richards. "Erika Flanders was superb in goal. I knew, as soon as I came to Bowling Green, that she was a quality goalkeeper.
"I hope that, if she continues to perform the way she did today and during the second half of last season, that she will finally get the recognition that she deserves. She was absolutely outstanding. She put up some great stats, but the single stat that means the most is the goal total. She held them to one goal, and we got one.
"It was a tremendous team performance, we just battled and showed a tremendous amount of character. We were down, 1-0, after less than three minutes on the road. We could have easily folded right there. But, we kept playing, waited for our chances, and managed to get a tie against a team from the Big Ten.
"Defensively, again, the back four of (senior Beth) Wechsler, (freshman Beth) Rieman, (junior Heidi) Williams and (sophomore Kacey) Freeman, who were very, very good. And, obviously, behind them is Erika, and I wish I could find the words to describe her play."
The Falcon starting lineup included four freshmen (Pucillo, Rieman, Kristy Coppes and Jessica Sadler), a sophomore (Freeman), three juniors (Conover, Flanders and Williams) and three seniors (Michelle Hoyng, Mandy Smith and Wechsler).
The Brown and Orange returns home for the next three matches, beginning with a Friday (Sept. 7) non-league tilt vs. Samford University. Kickoff is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. at Cochrane Field. Following that contest, the Falcons will begin the Mid-American Conference slate by hosting the University of Toledo Sunday (Sept. 9). That match will begin at 1:00 p.m.
