DES MOINES, Iowa - The opportunities were there for the Drake women's soccer team to garner its first victory of the season, but the Bulldogs were unable to convert on their scoring chances resulting in a 1-1 double-overtime tie with Green Bay (2-2-2) on Sunday (Sept. 8) at the Cownie Soccer Complex.
“We had chances to win the game today, but we kept the door open for them,” Bulldog head coach Lindsey Horner commented. “I credit our players for rebounding from Friday, starting today strong, and playing with their hearts on their sleeves for 110 minutes in this heat. We aren't a finished product by any means, but today's laundry list of areas to improve upon is manageable and can be fixed in the near future.”
A stellar team save by senior Brittany Schuling (Bondurant, Iowa/Bondurant-Farrar) prevented Green Bay from taking a 1-0 lead in the 18th minute (17:25) on Sydney Born's shot attempt.
Less than a minute later, Drake (0-4-2) cracked into the scoring column when freshman Rebecca Rodgers (Peotone, Ill./Peotone) delivered her second goal of the year at the 18:10 mark. Rodgers was able to beat her defender and burn a shot past Green Bay goalkeeper Katy Pilarzyk giving the Bulldogs a 1-0 lead. Registering the assist on the tally was junior Ashlie Stokes (Sioux City, Iowa/Sioux City North).
Despite being outshot in the initial stanza, 10-8, Drake managed a 5-3 margin in shots on goal and went into the intermission holding a 1-0 advantage.
The Bulldogs appeared on their way to a victory until they unsuccessfully attempted to clear the second cross off a corner kick in the 80th minute (79:01). Heidi Hartmann made Drake pay for the mistake with her first goal of the year, off an assist from Hekla Palmadottir.
Senior Paige Dusek (St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles North) nearly netted the game-winning goal at the 84:00 mark, but Pilarzyk covered up her shot in front of the net for the save.
The Bulldogs collected a pair of shots in both overtime sessions, none closer to a golden goal than a sliding shot in the box by Stokes off a pass from Dusek in the 104:49 mark.
Green Bay won the battle of shots on the afternoon, 21-17, although Drake bettered the Phoenix on net, 7-6.
Stokes finished the tilt with a game-high seven shots, while Dusek and Rodgers contributed five and three shots, respectively, to the Bulldogs' offensive attack. Hannah Kernen led the Phoenix with five shots.
Pilarzyk concluded the game with six saves for the Phoenix, while junior Andrea Swanson (Clive, Iowa/Valley) recorded four stops for Drake.
“This result was only disappointing in that we let them back in the game,” said Horner. “We knew they were playing for corners and restarts and were dangerous due to their size. Our breakdown occurred on a corner kick, we cleared the first ball, but weren't properly marked for the second cross.”
Drake returns to action on Friday (Sept. 13) hosting South Dakota State in a 6:00 p.m. tilt at the Cownie Soccer Complex.
