Aug. 28, 2009

Box Score

AUBURN, Ala. - The University of Dayton women's soccer team battled Auburn to a 1-1 double overtime tie Friday at the Auburn Soccer Complex.

"Our girls battled like crazy. I give them a ton of credit for playing hard all 110 minutes," said UD head coach Mike Tucker. "We had our chances to win it. It was just a great battle with two good teams."

The Tigers are ranked No. 25 by Top Drawer Soccer, while UD was not too far behind at No. 27 in the preseason rankings.

Junior Jerica DeWolfe scored her first goal of the year - the equalizer for the Flyers - in the 58th minute on an assist from senior Mandi Bäck, her second this season.

The Tigers, ranked No. 7 in the NSCAA South Region, struck first in the 27th minute on a Caitlin King goal.

Dayton (1-0-1) registered 22 shots to Auburn's 19, though the Flyers had 12 on goal compared to just five on frame for Auburn (0-0-2). Dayton had six shots in the overtime periods and the Tigers registered four.

"We had several shots on goal in overtime that were struck well from a distance," said Tucker. "In the second half we had three or four balls played to people in the box that got kicked away at the last second. Lauren MacCormick had an opportunity early in game. She got a step on her defender and a foot on the ball at the far post. It just nicked a player for corner kick. We had a lot of opportunities. Their goalkeeper (Amy Howard) did a great job cleaning up on corners and free kicks."

Both squads have only allowed one goal in their first two games this season. This is the second double overtime tie this year for the Tigers, who battled to a 0-0 draw against Samford in their season opener.

Freshman Katherine Boone earned her first collegiate start in goal, and registered fives saves for UD.

"She looked like she had been in there forever," said Tucker of Boone. "She was poised. The kicking game was good. Other than the 1v1 goal she made all the plays."

Bäck led Dayton with seven shots, while sophomore Kelsey Miller was busy with five shots, four of which were on goal.

Miller, Emily Kenyon, Kathleen Beljan and Lauren MacCormick played all 110 minutes for UD.

The Flyers, ranked No. 1 in the NSCAA Mid-Atlantic Region, will face Middle Tennessee State (3-0-0) this Sunday, Aug. 30 at 1 p.m. ET at Baujan Field in their home opener. The Blue Raiders are coming off a 2-1 double overtime win against Wright State.

"They're always at the top of their league. It's going to be a battle," said Tucker. "Tonight we've got to drive two hours to Atlanta and fly back at 6 a.m. Saturday. It's going to be tough recovery time, but I have no doubt the girls will respond and play well. It will be nice to finally play at home."