Nov. 3, 2013
Final Stats
CHICAGO - The Drake Bulldogs brought an end to the Loyola University Chicago women's soccer team's season this afternoon in the quarterfinals of the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament, defeating the Ramblers, 4-2, in a penalty shootout after the two sides played to a 1-1 draw in double overtime at Loyola Soccer Park. Tonight's result sees Loyola end the season with a record of 6-8-6.
"I thought we put in a nice performance tonight," said Loyola head women's soccer coach Barry Bimbi. "It hurt to give up a set-piece goal before the half when we had the lead and hit the crossbar twice previously. We had some really good spells in the first half but just couldn't find that second goal."
The two teams traded possession in the middle third of the field for the opening fifteen minutes on a cool late afternoon on Chicago's north side. Freshman Hailey Merrill had the game's first chance and did not let it go to waste. The Edina, Minn. native took a pass from senior Tricia Stonebraker, dribbled around her defender into the 18-yard box and fired a shot past Andrea Swanson, the Drake goalkeeper, at the near post to give the home side a 1-0 lead.
Merrill's goal looked to awaken the Drake offense from its early slumber. Ashlie Stokes fired just high of goal at the near post from outside the box shortly after Loyola took the lead. A scramble would ensue minutes later, following a Drake corner kick, which saw the Loyola defense clear a shot off the line to preserve the lead.
Loyola had a golden opportunity to double its advantage in the 37th minute but Stonebraker was unable to sneak her volley inside the near post following a corner. Shortly after, sophomore Jessica Bean unleashed a shot from distance that forced Swanson to tip the ball on to her crossbar. The Bulldogs made Loyola pay in the 41st minute when Stokes headed a ball in off of a corner kick that junior goalkeeper Monica Gonyo was unable to fully deflect.
The second half presented few chances for either team. Loyola's best came when the recently substituted Maggie Olsen launched a one-timer at goal that sailed high at the near post after a flick ahead from Merrill. The game headed to overtime as both teams battled to extend their respective seasons.
Despite outshooting the Bulldogs, 4-1, in the two overtime sessions, the Ramblers were unable to net a game-winner as the game headed to a penalty shootout. Both goalkeepers made saves in the opening round before each conceding in back-to-back rounds. After Stokes gave the Bulldogs a 3-2 lead in round four, junior Monika Lee's shot rung off the crossbar. Gonyo was unable to stop Brittany Schuling's following attempt as Drake advanced on to the semifinals by way of penalty kicks.
"As a coaching staff, we're proud of the girls for everything they've done this season," continued Bimbi. "We went through injuries and changes in our system midway through the year. We had to move people around, plug different people in and change shape a little bit but we still got better throughout every game."
