Overtime games are somewhat commonplace for the Lady Bruins soccer team this season as the team again went the distance on Friday afternoon in a 1-0 victory over Grace Christian University in Jacksonville, Florida. The overtime match marks the 7th so far this season with the Bruins going 3-2-2 in those games. With the win over the Tigers on Friday, the Bruins move to 9-5-2 on the season.
"It great collective effort tonight to guarantee another winning season," Bruins Head Coach Chris Carmichael said. "We still need to improve but need to get sufficient recovery before our game Tuesday."
The Bruins controlled possession for most of the match and were able to create several great chances to score. In the opening half, the Bruins controlled the shot margin as well as the tempo, but neither team found the back of the net as the half ended 0-0.
In the second half, the Bruins again went on the attack with Bailey Martin and Kristyn Rygh able to thread the needle with good passes ahead. Still, the Bruins shots were turned aside or simply missed the net as the half wore on. The Tigers didn't have as many chances to score, but the shots they did take were on target. Bruins' keeper Angelina Martin came up with several great saves in regulation to keep the Tigers off the board. As the buzzer sounded, the Bruins and Tigers prepared for overtime.
The Tigers nearly won the match in extra time as they created a lane and went on a breakaway. Martin saved the game for the Bruins with an incredible save to keep the match going. The Bruins responded by going on the offensive. Abby Davis again was the hero for the Bruins offensively as she took advantage of a loose ball in front of the net and buried it in the back of the net as the Bruins rushed the field in celebration with a 1-0 win.
"We came out very strong and quickly established a good tempo and rhythm of play and controlled the majority of possession which we know we needed to improve on," Coach Carmichael said. "We created a number of opportunities to find the back of the net but Grace did a great job taking away many of our scoring threats and were able to counterattack with a lot of speed."
Angelina Martin picked up her 5th clean sheet of the season while Abby Davis scored her team-leading 19th goal of the season. Next up, the Bruins will be on the road again on Tuesday as they travel to Cleveland, Georgia for a matchup with Truett-McConnell University.
