Notre Dame tied Wisconsin 2-2 in double overtime
Joe Licandro
Sports Writer
From the opening minute of the game on Sunday, the Notre Dame women's soccer team knew they were in for a real struggle against the University of Wisconsin. After two fatiguing halves and a grueling double overtime, the Irish were able to salvage a 2-2 tie against the Badgers who refused to back down from third-ranked Irish.
"We were missing four starters when we entered overtime," said Irish head coach Randy Waldrum. "But that is no excuse for our lack of communication and mental focus. We had numerous opportunities to put them away in the first and second half and we just didn't take advantage of our offensive breakaways."
Things could not have been any worse for the Irish at the very beginning of the game. Only 30 seconds into the game, Wisconsin scored an easy goal on a miscommunication between Irish defender Gudrun Gunnarsdottir and goalie Liz Wagner.
Gunnarsdottir tried to head the ball back to Wagner, but Wagner was unable to handle the high pass allowing Wisconsin forward Kelly Kundert to slip past Wagner and shoot the ball into a wide open net giving Wisconsin a quick 1-0 lead.
Although Wisconsin gained an early advantage, the Irish regained their composure and take possession of the ball for a majority of the first half, but they were could not capitalize on their early offensive chances.
Twice the Irish looked to score only to fall short. The first chance came when Irish forward Amy Warner received a pass from midfielder Monica Gonzales right in front of the net. Warner immediately returned the favor back to Gonzales only for Gonzales' shot to be blocked by a tremendous diving save from Wisconsin goalie Kelly Conway.
A few minutes later, Notre Dame had another prime opportunity to score, but Amy Warner's shot on goal hit the left post and bounced out of bounds.
The Irish, unaccustomed to trailing at home, were finally able to tie the game in the 27th minute of the first half. From 25 feet outside of the goalie box, Gonzales sent a high-arching left-footed shot over Conway's head. Gonzales, usually a defender, was forced to play midfielder as a result of an injury to starting midfielder Randi Scheller.
"I've played midfield before so it wasn't that much different for me," she said. "With all the injuries, I had to play midfield out of necessity, but it did not change my approach to the game at all."
Midfielder Mia Sarkesian and forward Kelly Tulisiak were credited with assists on Gonzales' first goal of the season.
The Irish prevented a 2-0 halftime deficit with a defensive stance that stopped Wisconsin's only other offensive threat in the first half. Wagner blocked a shot by Wisconsin midfielder Lisa Himrod, and then Himrod's rebound attempt was blocked at the corner of the net by Irish defender Candace Chapman.
The first ended in a 1-1 tie with the Irish dictating the pace of the game. From all indications early in the second half, it appeared as if the Irish would be able to take care of the Badgers, but once again, the Irish struggled to take advantage of their offensive chances.
Numerous times, the Irish were able to cross the ball into the Wisconsin goalie box, but the Irish forwards were hesitant to take shots on net allowing the Wisconsin defenders to recover and clear the ball out of bounds.
Despite the Irish miscues in front of the goal, they were able to take the lead in the second half on a goal nearly identical to Monica Gonzales' goal in the first half. Freshman Candace Chapman stole the ball from a Wisconsin player and made a run up the right sideline capping it off with a great pass to Warner. Warner juked around a defender and struck the ball with her left-foot from 25 feet away from the goal.
Warner's shot soared past the outstretched arms of Conway giving the Irish a 2 -1 lead.
For the remaining 30 minutes of the second half, the Irish continued to put pressure on the Wisconsin defense but they were unable to get any clean looks at the goal.
The Badgers unable to mount any serious offensive attacks either, but they refused to give up against the Irish. The Badgers' persistence paid off when they were able to surprise the Irish defense on a counterattack.
After a blocked Notre Dame corner kick, Wisconsin quickly moved the ball up field catching the Irish off guard. Irish midfielder Ashley Dryer was able to catch up to the streaking Wisconsin forwards but when she tried to clear the ball out of bounds, the ball landed at the feet of Wisconsin forward Kristin Betz.
Betz dribbled the ball to the center of the field and found onrushing forward Kelly Kundert. Betz's pass went just beyond the outstretched leg of Gunnarsdottir allowing Kundert to get an open shot on net. Kundert made the most of her opportunity striking the ball past Liz Wagner to tie the game at two with only five minutes remaining in regulation.
Regulation ended with the score knotted at 2-2. Both teams were extremely fatigued in the overtime periods. Most of the play took place in the midfield where neither team was able to take control of the ball and set up an offensive attack.
The Irish's best chance to score came early in the first overtime when Warner made a run towards the Wisconsin goal.
However, her shot was punched out of bounds by a great save from Conway.
The game was plagued by numerous fouls called on both teams, interrupting game flow.
"Certainly, there was physical play out there, but the ref was not the reason why we didn't play well," said Warner. "We just have to come together as a team. We just didn't execute the simple aspects of the game today."
After starting off the season with four straight home games, the Irish travel to California next week for pivotal battles against perennial top 10 teams Stanford and Santa Clara.
"We need to get healthy in a hurry," Waldrum said. "But we also need to pick up our intensity this week in practice."
Notes:
u After the Irish's 2-1 victory against Indiana on Friday night and their 2-2 tie to the Badgers on Sunday, the Irish's record now stands at 3-0-1 on the season.
uThe Irish defeated Indiana University in overtime 2-1 Friday night at Alumni Field thanks to goals by midfielder Randi Scheller and forward Kelly Tulisiak. Scheller's goal was her first of the season, while Tulisiak's was her third.
uThe Irish played Sunday's game without the services of starting midfielders Randi Scheller and Mary Boland. Scheller was injured late in the second half of the Irish victory against Indiana. Forward Melissa Tancredi was also kept out of action as she is still recovering from a knee injury. Scheller and Tancredi are hoping to return to action next weekend while Boland will remain out of action indefinitely. Forward Ali Lovelace was unable to play in overtime as a result of a knee injury she suffered at the end of the second half. Her status will be reevaluated tomorrow.
uThe tie snapped a Irish-record 29 consecutive home game winning streak that dates back to a 3-2 loss to the University of North Carolina in 1999.
All Sports Stories for Monday, September 10, 2001
