Overtime magic expires in scoreless draw

Coming back from two exciting overtime wins and having an untainted 3-0 record, the women’s soccer team held on in a double overtime to tie with Idaho State last week.

With nearly 500 fans attending, the crowd was anxious for a repeat overtime goal. UVU had its chances to score, but resorted to solid defense to avoid defeat.

UVU and Idaho State came prepared for the match, but neither team showed any signs of letting up defensively. Mallory Schott had eight saves and was named Great West Conference Defensive Player of the Week for the second consecutive week. Five of those saves came in the second half. Bailey Williams also took away five scoring opportunities from UVU.

“I was impressed with both teams. They both came prepared to battle today and it was a good show,” said UVU head coach Brent Anderson. “To come away zero-zero, you feel a little unfortunate you didn’t win but also a little fortunate that you didn’t lose.”

With the score tied 0-0 with only a minute left in regulation, Kaitlyn Thomas’ shot was saved by Williams. After the shot, the ball was then challenged by Nicole Archibald, who netted the ball with a header, which would have proven to be the game winner, but it was taken away by officials calling it illegal.

In overtime, Jamie Lyons had a game winning opportunity swept away by goaltender Williams in the 99th minute. In the 108th minute Kate Turner passed all ISU defenders with only Williams to beat, but was shut down in the effort.

“There was great goalkeeping on both sides. They were both very active, taking charge,” Anderson said. “I’m very impressed with Mallory, she’s a great leader for this team and really covered her goal well and kept the team in the game.”

“I had faith in my team that we were going to have a shutout. When the end of the game came both teams pressed harder so there is no surprise that there were more shots on goal,” Schott said. “Our defense has really good chemistry, they stepped up and really saved our butt. I am very proud of them. It’s better than losing.”