George Washington University
11-6-3
#3 Duquesne
11-6-3
Women's Soccer Advances on Overtime Thriller
11/3/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
KINGSTON, R.I. - The sixth-seeded GW women's soccer squad upset third-seeded Duquesne in the quarterfinal round of the 2016 Atlantic 10 Championship on Thursday afternoon in a dramatic 2-1, double-overtime victory at the URI Soccer Complex.
Senior Brittany Cooper's goal with nine seconds left on the clock in the final extra period gave GW (11-6-3) the victory over Duquesne (11-6-3) to advance to the semifinal round on Friday. The Colonials advance to take on seventh-seeded Dayton at 5 p.m.
"I thought we played really well, I thought it's the best we played in quite a while," said head coach Sarah Barnes. "I think we put together a longer period of time of playing our game and moving the ball and having possession. Obviously they're a really good team and they had couple of dangerous looks, but I thought we rebounded and dealt with it pretty well."
GW dominated possession in the first half, issuing the only three shots in the stanza, but were unable to find the back of the net as the match remained scoreless through the first 45 minutes of play.
Both squads adjusted in the second half, posting eight shots apiece.
"We went over at halftime that we're going to score from shots from distance," said senior MacKenzie Cowley. "I feel like that's something our team doesn't normally do, but we knew that by making that adjustment, the right chance was going to come and we had to be patient about it."
Duquesne opened the second stanza with corner kicks in the 47th and 48th minutes, but GW's defense prevented any close threats.
Cowley had a good opportunity in the 58th minute, taking the ball down the field before initiating a give-and-go play with Cooper. Cowley took a shot from eight yards out, but her attempt was blocked as the match remained scoreless.
Cooper followed with a shot in the 61st minute, but a save kept the stalemate alive.
The Colonials broke through in the 72nd minute when redshirt junior Ivana Szwejkowski won a ball at midfield before finding Cowley in the box with a sharp pass. Cowley then turned and sent a laser shot into the top left half of the net beyond the reach of the Dukes' keeper to give GW a 1-0 lead.
"Ivana won the ball in the middle of the field and was dribbling, and I remember telling her to take the girl on, to commit her," said Cowley. "There was a girl in front of me and I wanted it on my right foot, but I couldn't get it, so then I just touched it around their defender and I noticed their goalie was cheating to the near post so I hit it inside the far post."
Senior Kate Elson nearly added insurance in the 78th minute, lacing a shot toward the net from the top of the box, but her attempt was snatched for a save.
Duquesne issued the equalizer in the 85th minute to send the match into overtime.
"Once they tied it up our mentality was to stick to the plan and things will go well," said Cooper.
"We knew we could win and we knew we had possession for most of the game," said Cowley. "We knew we couldn't let this go when we had worked so hard and there's no way we're going to lose this game. We didn't give up."
Cowley sent the only shot of the first overtime period wide as the match remained locked, 1-1.
Redshirt freshman Megan McCormick took a header off of a free kick from sophomore Dani Frese in the a103rd minute, but another save kept the game going.
In the final minute of play, Cooper took the ball into the box then sent a well-struck ball into the top half of the net for the golden goal, lifting the Colonials 2-1 to advance to the semifinals.
"The thing I'm most proud of is that we were up, and then we conceded a goal and at that point people might be thinking 'Duquesne has the momentum now', but our team was very confident and very much believed that they could get the win," said Barnes. "They didn't look deflated or scared or nervous, they looked confident and knew they could do it. That's the best takeaway from today and certainly I'm really proud of the character they showed."
Cowley's goal marked her career-best 11th score of the season while Cooper increased her career-high goal total to four on the season. The assist was Szwejkowski's third of the year.
After falling in the quarterfinals last season, the Colonials reach the semifinals for the first time since 2014.
Dayton advanced with an upset of second-seeded Saint Louis, 3-0, earlier on Thursday. The Colonials and Flyers last met in 2014.
Team Stats
COWLEY, MacKenzie (11)
Assisted By: SZWEJKOWSKI, Ivana
shot to the top of the net
71:11
STATON, Cydney (3)
GOAL by DUQ STATON, Cydney, goal number 3 for season.
84:08
COOPER, Brittany (2)
GOAL by GW COOPER, Brittany, goal number 2 for season.
109:51
