Bowling Green State University Athletics
Miami Downs Falcons, 3-0
November 08, 2002 | Women's Soccer
Nov. 8, 2002
OXFORD, Ohio - Miami University's Danielle Berkemeier, the 2002 Mid-American Conference Player of the Year, had a hat trick as the RedHawks downed the Bowling Green State University women's soccer team, 3-0, at the Miami Soccer Field Friday afternoon (Nov. 8). The contest was a semifinal-round match in the MAC Tournament.
The win improved top-seeded MU's record to 17-2-2, and the RedHawks are now 10-0-1 all-time in league tournament play. The Falcons, seeded fourth, saw the season come to an end with a record of 12-8-2.
Miami held a 21-9 advantage in shots, including an 11-2 margin in shots on goal. The RedHawks' Leigh Terry made two saves in goal, while Falcon senior Erika Flanders made eight stops.
Berkemeier's first goal came at the 41:25 mark, as her corner kick curved toward the net, hit the far post and caromed in.
The hosts doubled the lead with less than 10 minutes remaining in the contest. A cross by Jessica Godshall found Berkemeier in the center of the penalty area. Berkemeier then found herself all alone as a Falcon defender slipped. Berkemeier settled the ball and fired a shot into the left side of the net.
Berkemeier's final goal came with under three minutes left, as the Falcons pressed forward in an attempt to score. Berkemeier took the ball just over midfield, and took several dribbles to try to elude Flanders, who was 35-40 yards out of her goal. Berkemeier's shot slowly rolled into the net for the final margin.
"I think the underlying factor (in Miami's win) is the fact that they have tremendous confidence in themselves, as individuals and as a team," said BGSU head coach Andy Richards. "They also have excellent speed, great skill and a good work rate, and they have individuals who are game-winners -- obviously, Danielle Berkemeier scored a hat trick today, and a pretty good one, too. But, they have several players who could do that for them, and they're very well-coached as well. It is very hard to play against them, and they're a very difficult team to break down. I thought we matched up against them very well today.
"Even after it was 2-0 and 3-0, in the last few minutes, we were still fighting, and trying to do some things.
"It was wonderful to have the memorial service last night (before the MAC Tournament banquet), but as we walk out of the chapel, that's the end of it for many people. We have to continue to live with that, and struggle with the emotions that we're all feeling. We all miss Leslie Dawley very, very much. She was an integral part of our team, and when you lose a part of your team, it's just not the same. It was emotional for us today; it was very difficult for us to continue to play.
"It wasn't harder than Wednesday (BGSU's quarterfinal-round win over Buffalo), but it was different. There was a very emotional wave of support on Wednesday, and when you raise your level of game to that standard, it's incredibly difficult to do it again within 48 hours.
"But, take nothing away from Bowling Green. We played one heck of a game today, and gave Miami a terrible fright. What's gotten us this far is that we've stuck together as a team. The girls have shown tremendous strength, for themselves and for each other, and it's very important that we continue to do that. Soccer has held us together over the last few days, and now we need to find something else to keep us together. The best thing right now is to be with each other and to spend time together.
"It's amazing the resources this group of individuals has. We challenged them again to be even better (today). In terms of the effort and intensity, I couldn't ask for anything more.
"I said to them at the end that, whenever I coach a team, I always hope that they work very hard and learn something from the journey. I think it's very apparent that we've done both this year. We have worked tremendously hard, and achieved a lot of success when people didn't expect us to. We were picked to finish ninth in the MAC (in the preseason coaches poll), and we finished fourth and got to the semifinals.
"But, the learning is the biggest part. These kids are student-athletes, and they're not only learning in the classroom. Learning about life and about yourself and each other is the biggest lesson you can learn."
The Falcons end the season with a school-record win total. BGSU, picked to finish ninth in the league's preseason coaches poll, placed fourth in the final regular-season standings. Coach Andy Richards has four seniors -- Jill Conover, Flanders, Tracy Gleixner and Susan Wallace -- on the 2002 roster.
"I don't think (playing today's match) was more difficult (than Wednesday's match), but I wouldn't say it was easy," said Flanders, the 2002 team captain. "It's not like this is over; Leslie is on the minds of all of us. We kind of looked like we were drained out there, and I think a lot of us were.
"I think the best thing right now is for us to stay together ... as long as we stay together, I think we'll be all right."
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