BGSU women’s soccer (10-2-8, 5-1-7) took down Buffalo (12-5-2, 8-4-1) in a 1-0 double overtime thriller in the first match of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) tournament in Columbus, Ohio, at the Historic Crew Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 1.
After a 0-0 draw in the regular season, Bowling Green and Buffalo were matched up in the first round of the MAC tournament.
“Two very evenly matched teams, we knew it was going to be difficult to score against them and for them to score against us. We expected a tight match,” head coach Chris Fox said.
The match had the same outcome through regulation, with neither the Falcons nor the Bulls being able to get a shot past the stellar goalkeeping and defensive play of each other.
The MAC Goalkeeper of the Year in Buffalo’s Lexie Thompson in the net, along with fellow First Team All-MAC defender Frederique St.-Jean, protected the Bulls’ goal for the entirety of regulation, allowing only five shots through 90 minutes.
For the Falcons, the combination of sophomore goalkeeper Payton O’Malley having a handful of crucial saves, with junior defenders Taylor Green and Gabby Lamparty holding down the backline with multiple massive headers throughout the second half, pushed the match to overtime.
Both teams stayed at a stalemate for a whole 10-minute overtime period before gearing up for the second and final period of play.
“The girls came through and did great. They owned the moment and won the game,” Fox said.
The Falcons found their goal in the second overtime when junior forward Ella Kane found a hole in the defense and was able to hit junior forward Isabella Mazzaferro, who placed a shot in the top left corner and into the back of the net.
“I knew it was a critical moment for us,” Kane said, “we worked for that, playing over a hundred minutes, and we just knew that was our chance.”
The duo that scored the Falcons’ goal were two of the many players who had been injured at some point in the season, including Kane, who was given the green light to play earlier in the morning.
Heading into the overtime periods, the Orange and Brown knew what was at stake and what needed to happen.
“There’s only 20 minutes, you never know when someone is going to score and end the game, so just fighting till the end,” Mazzaferro said.
The Falcons keep their season alive and push themselves to the MAC tournament semi-finals, where BGSU will face Miami (OH) on Tuesday, Nov. 4, in Columbus, Ohio, at the Historic Crew Stadium.
