NEW CONCORD, Ohio – Following a wild shootout into sudden death, undefeated Ohio Valley officially earned the Great Midwest Athletic Conference Women’s Soccer Championship tournament trophy on Saturday by tying Ohio Dominican 1-1 and winning by virtue of penalty kicks.
The top-seeded Fighting Scots and second-seeded Panthers made eight consecutive PK’s before trading a pair of misses. OVU’s Jennifer Medina stopped the steak to put the Fighting Scots ahead 6-5 before goalkeeper Kim Mora made her third save of the shootout to start the celebration.
Mora stopped Ohio Dominican on a pair of sudden-death attempts past the normal rotation of the first five shooters.
To get to the shootout, both teams left it all on the field for all 110 minutes, even with Ohio Dominican left shorthanded and a man down late in the second half. The Panthers fought valiantly to end regulation and get through the overtime periods to give themselves a chance right down to the wire.
Ohio Valley made it a clean sweep for both the men’s and women’s programs on a memorable day and are now both bound for the NCAA Championship Midwest Regional. The women’s selection show will be aired Monday evening at 6 p.m. ET with the reveal of all 48 teams in the bracket.
Holding on to hopes for a national tournament appearance as an at-large selection is Ohio Dominican, ranked seventh regionally before tying OVU, the No. 20 team in the country and No. 3 in the region.
The Fighting Scots started the season picked at the bottom, last in the Great Midwest Preseason Coaches Poll, but still remain undefeated at 16-0-3 after struggling through a 1-15-1 season in 2016.
It’s the kind of turnaround that Great Midwest Coach of the Year Luis Rincon pulled off in a short window of time that makes the Fighting Scots’ season accomplishments that much more incredible this season.
“We knew that it was going to be a very tough game going in,” Rincon said. “Both teams were evenly matched and the girls fought all the way to the end, even after the two PK’s (that we thought might go through).”
The scoring in regulation started in the 35th minute when freshman Samantha Buck slotted a low shot past Mora with an assist from the other side of the field from junior Susan D’Isidoro. Even though it was ODU’s only shot on goal in the first half, the Panthers made it count.
Six minutes later, sophomore Montserratt Grau sent a fluttering free kick past the Ohio Dominican defense, as it went untouched into the goal, to tie the match at 1-1.
Only two shots were recorded in the first overtime as OVU and ODU engaged in a defensive struggle. The second overtime session featured only one shot between the two teams.
With the shootout locked at 4-4, Ohio Valley sophomore Iona Rothfield missed wide left, which put the pressure on Mora and she deflected a shot from Lindsey Sullivan, pushing it above the net.
After a miss from each side, Ohio Valley’s Great Midwest Defensive Player of the Year Ana Da Costa converted her chance, but Ohio Dominican’s Allie Atkinson responded with a goal of her own to draw even once again at 5-5.