Boston College Athletics
No. 20 Women's Soccer Falls To Connecticut In Overtime
October 03, 2003 | Women's Soccer
Oct. 3, 2003
Chestnut Hill, Mass. - The 20th-ranked women's soccer team dropped 2-1 decision to Connecticut tonight at Newton Campus Field before a record crowd of 1,589. It was the third straight overtime contest for the Eagles. With the loss, BC falls to 8-1-2 (0-1-1 BIG EAST), while UConn improves to 6-2-2. The game was played under the lights in unseasonably cold weather and it marked the debut of night soccer on Newton Campus.
The teams battled in an extremely even and physical first half. Boston College had the best scoring chance of the half in the first five minutes when Heather Ferron's shot glanced off the hands of UConn goalkeeper Erin Rice. But Rice was able to slow the ball down enough to chase it down, inches before it would have crossed the goal line. Eagle goalkeeper Kate Taylor made two diving saves to preserve the tie heading into halftime.
Less than a minute into the second half, BC got on the board in the most unconventional of ways. Freshman Jenny Maurer sent a cross into the box and UConn defender Kristin Fisher tried to clear the ball, but instead it ricocheted into the net, an own goal. Less than five minutes later, though, Connecticut's Kristen Graczyk took a pass from Meghan Schnur and made a run, then fired a shot over the head of Taylor and into the goal to tie the game. Taylor made four saves in the second half, every one of them acrobatic, to keep the Eagles in the game.
The Eagles had a great scoring chance early in the first overtime when Laina Ceddia made a run towards the goal, but after a tangle with a UConn defender and a non-call, the Huskies regained possession. Within two minutes, they were in the BC end and after a great effort by Taylor to deflect the ball off a UConn corner, Brittany Barakat collected the rebound and fired it into the back of the goal for the game-winner.
Boston College is off until next Friday when they travel to Syracuse to take on the Orangewomen at 4:00 p.m.
