Overtime against the Oaks

Women’s soccer fends off Menlo College with a double overtime tie to stay undefeated.

Dale Fredriks, Writer

 

The Menlo College Oaks came into Saturday’s match against Biola women’s soccer looking to end the Eagles’ perfect 7-0 record. Through 87 minutes, it looked like Menlo had the game in the bag, but a crucial foul in the box gave Biola a penalty kick, which senior midfielder Jessie Burns buried in the back of the net to equalize the game at 1-1. The score stayed the same through two overtimes, meaning Biola stays unbeaten, but moves to 7-0-1 overall.

Ironically, the score of a game last season on Sept. 22, 2015 also ended in a 1-1 tie after two overtimes.

The similarities do not stop there as Menlo scored first in both games, Biola scored within the final ten minutes of regulation for both games and senior forward Taylor Venegas took the most shots of any player in both games. Last season, Venegas found the net to tie the game with a total of five shots, while this year she took an incredible 13 shots, but did not score.

Biola had a total of 27 shot attempts this game with nine of them on target, but the Oaks’ keeper fought off each one except the penalty kick from Burns. Three of those shots came in the pair of overtimes, and Biola had two quality opportunities in the final two minutes of the second overtime. But the comeback proved just out of reach, leaving the Eagles with a bittersweet finish.

“We’re always pleased to walk away from a game with a point, and for our team to claw back from being down 1-0 and to walk away with a tie, we’re pleased with that,” said head coach Erin Brunelle. “I know for the ladies, reading their faces at the end of the game, that tie felt more like a loss, and that just shows how badly they want to win every game and to stay unbeaten.”

The women take to Al Barbour field again on Sept. 27 when they face The Master’s University Mustangs in another Golden State Athletic Conference match at 7 p.m.

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