SIOUX FALLS, SD – The hottest player in the Northern Sun came through with an amazing goal in an incredibly clutch moment. With six goals in her last four games, University of Mary captain
Olivia Gardner found the net once again, scoring the winning goal in the 85
th minute to squash a late charge by the University of Sioux Falls. The Marauders 3-2 road win over the Cougars pushed UMary past USF and into a three-way tie for 8
th place in the NSIC after starting the day in 12
th place.
The Marauders improve to 6-5-3 overall and 4-4-3 (15 points) in NSIC play. The Cougars are 6-7-1 overall and 4-6-1 (13 pts). The top eight teams qualify for the NSIC tournament. Four games remain in the regular season.
UMary opened the scoring when
Chloe Brand crushed a corner kick into the goal in the 14
th minute. Serving from the left of the goal, Brand's shot stayed high and scraped the top of the leaping USF goalkeeper Morgan Jost's gloves before settling into the back of the net.
Maicee Burke doubled the Marauders lead in the 40
th minute. Following a scramble off another corner kick for UMary,
Allison Lepp's initial shot from just inside the top of the goal box rebounded off Jost and a USF defender right to Burke. The sophomore forward slammed the ball towards the right corner to send UMary into intermission with a 2-0 lead.
After UMary held an 11-2 edge in shots in the first half, it was USF that applied the pressure in the second half. The Cougars, who outshot the Marauders 8-2 in the final 45', tallied in the 71
st minute to pull within a goal. Addison Van Zee then tied the game in the 81
st minute with her 8
th goal of the season.
Less than four minutes later, the Marauders regained the lead. Seeming trapped on the endline to the right of the goal with nowhere to maneuver,
Rachel Gensch created enough space to deliver a perfectly placed cross to the left side of the goal box. Fighting off a defender while keeping her on her left hip, Gardner burst towards the left side of the goal. Diving in an effort to beat the defender to the ball, Gardner redirected the ball just inside the left post for the winning goal, just beyond the outstretched hands of a diving Just.
The Marauders held the advantage in shots (13-10), shots on frame (9-5) and corner kicks (10-0).
UMary wraps up its final NSIC weekend road trip of the season when the Marauders play at Southwest Minnesota State University on Sunday, October 26. Game time is 1 pm.
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