Bowling Green State University
BUFFALO
Bulls Win OT Affair, 3-2
October 17, 2003 | Women's Soccer
Oct. 17, 2003
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - Erin McGarry's goal two minutes into overtime gave the University at Buffalo a 3-2 victory over the Bowling Green State University women's soccer team Friday afternoon (Oct. 17). The Mid-American Conference match was held at BGSU's Cochrane Field.
With the win, the Bulls improve to 9-6-1 overall and 5-4-1 in MAC play, while the Falcons drop to 6-9-1 and 4-4-1, respectively.
Sophomores Julie Trundle and Britt Anderson scored goals for the Falcons, who return to Cochrane for a Sunday (Oct. 19) match against MAC-leading Kent State University.
The Falcons had the first few shots of Friday's contest, but the Bulls' first shot attempt resulted in a goal with only 8:31 elapsed. McGarry played a ball forward that Jennifer Rounds headed to an open Nicole Olszewski. Olszewski blooped a shot over Falcon starting goalkeeper Jenifer Kernahan to give the visitors an early lead.
It didn't take the Falcons long to equalize, as Trundle tied the match eight minutes later. Sophomore Ashley Wentzel took a corner kick for the Brown and Orange, and classmate Samantha Meister outjumped her defenders in the box. The ball brushed off Meister's head and went directly to an open Trundle at the far (right) side of the net. Trundle quickly settled the ball and fired it past UB 'keeper Anna-Lesa Calvert and high into the net.
The teams went to halftime deadlocked at 1-1, and each team had good chances in the early moments of the second half. UB threatened to score nearly eight minutes into the half, but Falcon redshirt sophomore Ali Shingler, who played the second half and the overtime, made a diving stop of a Lauren West shot. Then, Meister was thwarted by Calvert on a breakaway, after receiving a nifty through-ball from junior Kristy Coppes.
The Bulls got a goal at the 66:07 mark to regain the lead. UB's top scorer, Emily Russell, redirected a cross toward the net, but the ball caromed off the crossbar. The rebound, however, came right back to Russell, and she popped the ball into the net, just inside the right post.
UB had a chance to take a two-goal lead, but Shingler made a kick-save on a West shot that was ticketed toward the far post with 7:57 remaining in the second half.
BGSU tied the contest, with the goal coming on another set piece with under six minutes to go. After a UB foul, Trundle lofted a free kick into the penalty area, where Anderson headed it home for her third goal of the season.
Junior Katie Piening nearly gave the Falcons the lead on a header of her own, but Calvert was able to make the save with 1:32 left. The teams headed to overtime, where McGarry ended the contest with her first goal of the season.
The winning play came after a UB corner kick by Shannon Ferreira sailed into a crowded penalty area. The Falcons were unable to clear the ball in traffic, and it found McGarry on the right side of the goal, about six yards out. She quickly trapped the ball and shot it into the net, sparking a UB celebration.
The Bulls held a narrow 14-12 advantage in shots, including a 10-9 margin in shots on goal. Calvert made six saves to earn the win for the visitors. Kernahan had three stops and Shingler four for the Falcons.
BGSU, as mentioned, will take on the MAC's first-place team, Kent State, Sunday afternoon (Oct. 19). The match is the second half of a soccer doubleheader at Cochrane Field, with the Falcon men facing Birmingham Southern at 11:30 a.m. The BGSU-KSU women's match is scheduled for a 2:30 p.m. start.
NOTES
QUOTING BGSU COACH ANDY RICHARDS
"It's the same old story. We keep letting in goals. We can't keep doing that to ourselves and expect to win. It's a team responsibility, though, not just one person or one group. And, we had our chances offensively, and we've got to put our chances away."
"I would have been upset had we played poorly. I get upset when we lose and don't play well. But I'm not upset today. Obviously, I hate to lose, but I thought we played pretty well. I told the team at the end that I felt they'd really played a great game, and put in a lot of effort. We fell behind twice (in regulation), but we clawed our way back into the game with maximum effort."
"The last two games, we've lost 3-2, and I don't think we have played that badly. The luck just isn't running our way right now. Earlier in the season, there were times when we got the better of the luck, but it didn't happen today. We are working hard, though, and doing our best to put ourselves in position to win the game."
"I know it sounds naive, but we need to score more, and concede less. As a team, we have allowed too many goals in too many games. We have given up three goals in each of the last three games, and when we do that, we give ourselves a tough task offensively. We can't continue to fall behind in each game -- it is asking a lot for us to continually come back."
"I was pleased with our goals today. It was nice to see Julie (Trundle) finish her chance and get in the goal column again, and Britt has scored a great goal today. Britt now has two goals in the last two games, and she has done the things that Britt does best. She scored (Wednesday at Michigan State) on a good strike and today on a great header."
"Again, it may sound simplistic, but we didn't take our chances, and Buffalo did. We just need to keep working hard and doing the little things, and we'll see if the luck runs our way Sunday vs. Kent State."
