Freshman Marissa Everett scored the deciding goal for the Ducks twenty-five seconds into overtime, as Oregon beat Washington 1-0 on Senior Day to snap its seven-game losing streak.
“I was really just happy for the team,” head coach Kat Mertz said after the game at Papé Field. “I feel like we deserved it, just one of them.”
A game as aggressive as this one – in which four yellow cards were issued – got off to a surprisingly slow start. Neither side attempted a shot in the first ten minutes and both teams’ offenses looked shaky. Washington put the first shot on goal in the 13th minute, but Oregon keeper Halla Hinriksdottir stopped it with a diving save. Hinriksdottir totaled three saves.
Shortly after Washington’s first shot, Oregon senior Kira Wagoner’s cross through the box went just out of reach of two diving Ducks and bounced out of bounds.
As both teams traded shots for the rest of the game – with neither side finding the back of the net – it seemed like more of the same for a frustrated Oregon squad. There were plenty of chances to be had, but the Ducks just could not convert.
That all changed in overtime.
A mere 25.7 seconds into extra time, Ashlee Schulz found a streaking Marissa Everett in the box, and Everett punched in her shot for her third goal of the season.
“I was kinda scared [when the ball came to me] because I thought, ‘Don’t mess this up,’” Everett laughed. “Then it kind of just landed perfectly. It was a perfect connection.”
For the Ducks, who sit at 2-8-0 in the Pac-12, this game was as much for the young players as it was for the seniors.
“We’ve set the tone and I think everybody is completely committed to following up with that, and keeping this culture and this idea of persevering and hard work and family above everything else,” Wagoner said. “That’s going to get us wins like it did today.”
Wagoner is one of five seniors who were honored at today’s Senior Day celebration. Joining her in graduating next spring are defenders Kelsey Foo and Kristen Parr, forward Brooke Strawn, and goalkeeper Katie McCormick.
On a day meant for the seniors, a Everett, a freshman, proved to be the hero. But as long the team gets wins, everyone is happy.
“It was a team collective effort and at the end of the day I do not care who puts it in the net, as long as it goes in,” Wagoner said. “I’m very, very, very proud of her (Everett) and our team.”
The Ducks (5-13-0 overall, 2-8-0 in the Pac-12) will wrap up their season next week, heading to Corvallis to take on Oregon State (6-8-3, 2-7-0) in the season finale. Kickoff is at 6 p.m.
Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @g_amorris
Overtime goal snaps losing streak for women’s soccer on senior day
Gus Morris
October 31, 2015
Adam Eberhardt
Oregon Ducks Defender Kelsey Foo (10) looks to make a pass to Oregon Ducks Defender Kristen Parr (15) as she is put under pressure by Washington Huskies Midfielder Shannon Simon (15). The Oregon Women’s Soccer team play the University of Washington at Papé Field in Eugene, Ore on Nov. 1, 2015. (Adam Eberhardt/Emerald)
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