Oct. 22, 2010
Final Stats
BUFFALO, N.Y. - Cathryn Rogers' second goal of the season could not have come at a more opportune time as the sophomore's corner kick fell into the corner of the net as time expired to give Ohio a 1-0 win over Buffalo on the road Friday night.
With the result looking to be headed for a scoreless deadlock as the final seconds of the second overtime dripped away, Rogers gathered an out-of-play ball and lined up for the corner try. Her well-placed offering fell into the corner of the strings as time expired to give the `Cats (6-6-4, 3-3-3 MAC) the win.
Ohio tallied a season-high 24 shots on the night and outshot Buffalo (1-14-2, 0-7-2 MAC) 24-5. Kelsey Pichel (Rochester Hills, Mich.) tallied a game-high five shots, including three on goal. Rachael Philpot (Cincinnati, Ohio) added four shots, with three landing on goal. Rogers, Jackie Hanson (LaGrange, Ill.) and Sara Seitz (Englewood, Ohio) all recorded three shots.
Ohio's defense shined once again, especially in the second half, holding the Bulls without a shot over the last 65 minutes of play. The Green and White back line of Sarah Brown (North Royalton, Ohio), Lauren Burke (Medina, Ohio), Paige Howard (Mentor, Ohio) and Kim Nordtveit (Newtown, Pa.) once again turned in a solid outing, while Mattie Liston (Lakewood, Ohio) recorded three saves to go with her sixth shutout of the season.
"We definitely had the bulk of the possession," Ohio coach Stacy Strauss said. "We did a good job of getting the ball out and into space quickly. Our defense did a great job to start our offense today."
The `Cats came charging out of the gates and controlled play early on, pressuring the Bulls' defense with two shots on goal in the first two minutes on strikes from Philpot and Pichel. Nice saves from Buffalo keeper Danielle Quigley kept the Green and White off the board, however.
Ohio controlled the action through the next few minutes, before the Bulls rallied with shots in the 12th and 13th minutes that were corralled by Liston to keep things quiet. The middle part of the first half saw the `Cats control the action again as they tallied five shots in a seven-minute span, including two from Famodu, but none were able to find the back of the net. Ohio continued to keep the pressure on through the remainder of the half, but Buffalo's defense managed to keep the count scoreless heading into the half.
The Green and White finished the opening frame with a 12-4 advantage in shots and a 4-0 edge in corner kicks.
Hanson nearly put the `Cats on the board at the end of the 55th minute, taking aim after a corner kick. Once again the Bulls' keeper was able to make the save though. Two more promising Green and White attempts in the 61st and 64th minutes were also collected by Quigley.
Action went back and forth over the next several minutes until Ohio gained control towards the end of regulation. Shots from Philpot and Pichel were turned away once again, however, as the score remained 0-0 after 90 minutes. The `Cats' defense was especially strong in the second period, limiting the Bulls to just one shot in the frame. Ohio also outshot Buffalo 19-5 in regulation and held a 6-0 advantage in corner kicks.
Nearly five minutes into the first overtime, the Green and White looked poised to end things as it kept the action firmly entrenched deep in Bull territory. Despite three corner opportunities and a pair of Seitz shots, Ohio still was unable to get the needed score. The first overtime came to a close with the score still knotted at zero.
The `Cats continued to keep play deep in Buffalo territory to start the second frame, but the Bulls were still able to somehow keep Ohio out of the net. The result looked to be headed for the draw as the `Cats were unable to score with play heading into the final two minutes. Ohio gained control of play near the Bulls' goal near the end of play. With time dripping away, Pichel fired a direct kick that was deflected out of bounds by Buffalo's keeper. With just under 10 ticks left on the clock, Rogers quickly gathered the ball, placed it and sent a lining shot that landed in the net just as time expired to secure the win.
"It was just a lot of confidence and composure on Cat's (Cathryn Rogers) part to gather the ball, place it and strike it quickly," Strauss said. "It was just a great individual effort on her part."
Ohio will now have a quick turnaround as it heads back to Athens and prepares to take on Kent State Sunday as part of the `Cats' Senior Day. First touch is set for 1 p.m. at Chessa Field.
