Women’s Soccer Uses Back-to-Back Goals to Overcome UTSA

Friday, October 11

Boca Raton, Fla.

8:00 PM

Florida Atlantic

-1030, 410 CUSA

UTSA

-461, 040 CUSA

UTSA

Florida Atlantic

Photo by: JC Ridley/Owlpix.com

10/11/2019 11:36:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Box Score

BOCA RATON, Fla. – Down 1-0, the Florida Atlantic University women's soccer team came up with rapid-fire goals in the span of 1:11 to overtake and overcome UTSA late in the second half on Friday night, for a comeback Conference USA win, 2-1.

The Turning Point:
Neither team dented the scoreboard in the first half, and it would be the Roadrunners (4-6-1, 0-4-0 C-USA) drawing first blood, angling a shot in off the left post in the 71st minute for the initial edge. But in the blink of an eye, the match was tied and then flipped. Mary O'Hara equalized for the Owls (10-3-0, 4-1-0 C-USA) at 79:37, and just over a minute later, Pernille Velta's header gave the home team the lead for good.

The Finish:
FAU enjoyed possession for much of the remainder of the match and did not allow another UTSA shot. A corner kick in the waning seconds by the Roadrunners hit the side of the netting in a last-ditch attempt to tie.

Notables:

O'Hara posted her eighth goal and Velta her fifth
Both were set up by nice crosses, giving assists to Carolynn Wotring and Sammy Vitols, respectively
Goalkeeper Cassidy Wasdin picked up the win with two saves, one in each half
She, Wotring, Alex Maxson, Luisa Daikeler, Hailey Landrus and Jessica Monteiro were on for the full time; O'Hara played all but three minutes
Former Owl and current member of the Scotland national team, Claire Emslie, was recognized at halftime

Quotable

"I really give our players a lot of credit," said head coach Patrick Baker. "We changed our shape, we went for it, very quickly after (the UTSA goal) we equalized, and very quickly after that we got the eventual game-winner … It was a nice comeback."

"It's necessary to keep your head up, to stay positive," said freshman defender Luisa Daikeler of the team's mindset after the UTSA goal. "Because there was so much time on the clock, (almost) 30 minutes, it's enough time. You can use every moment that comes up, keep the ball rolling, and look what happens … we scored, we kept going and we scored again."

Full Video with Coach Baker:

Full Video with Luisa Daikeler:

What's Next

The Owls are off on Sunday, and away next weekend: playing Old Dominion this upcoming Thursday, and a week from Sunday, traveling to take on Middle Tennessee. There are three more opportunities to see the team at home (Oct. 25, Oct. 27 and Nov. 1), wrapping the regular season.