University of Richmond Athletics
Women's Soccer Ties Rhode Island 1-1 In Double Overtime
10/28/2005 | Women's Soccer
Oct. 28, 2005
University of Richmond, Va. - The University of Richmond Spiders put an abrupt end to Rhode Island's four-game winning streak on Friday night as they battled the Rams to a 1-1 stalemate in double overtime at First Market Stadium. The Spiders, now 4-9-4 and 2-4-2 in the Atlantic 10, celebrated their senior night in dramatic fashion when senior Annette Isham scored the game-tying goal with just 2:08 left in the match.
The Rams entered the game undefeated in the conference (6-0-0); however, that was not enough to intimidate the Spiders on their senior night at their home field. Both teams entered the game with full intensity, connecting passes, putting on high pressure, and tackling hard. Although the first half remained scoreless with the Spiders out shooting the Rams 7-5, the heart and energy that the teams showcased was exhilarating to watch.
The excitement continued into the second half when Rhode Island's Debra Nelson broke the stalemate just before the 60-minute mark as she intercepted an under-kicked pass back to a Richmond defender and slid a shot past Richmond keeper Kelly Kolker, hitting the right post and bouncing in. Nelson's goal was her sixth of the season and gave the Rams a 1-0 edge that lasted throughout most of the remainder of the game.
Trailing 1-0 throughout the much of the second half, the Spiders kept the attack on strong and had several close encounters, including a header by freshman Jessie Wolfe (Germantown, Md.) that Rhode Island keeper Ria Carroll punched out just enough to hit the crossbar and deflect out.
Although the Rams out shot the Spiders in the second half (8-5), all it took was one determined Spider on her senior night to save the game. With just 2:08 remaining in the match, the Spiders made an unbelievable comeback when Wolfe passed the ball to senior Annette Isham (Denver, Colo.) who then beat the last defender and placed the ball perfectly to the right of Carroll, bringing the game to a tie and sending the match into overtime. Isham's goal was her second of the season and the thirteenth in her career as a Spider.
"I'm so happy for Annette," exclaimed Richmond Head Coach Peter Albright. "She is such a great player. Even though she hasn't scored a lot this season, she has been playing so well."
Both overtime periods went by without a score and the game ended with the Spiders and the Rams evenly matched with 14 shots each. Rhode Island's Carroll recorded seven saves throughout the match, bumping her up to 106 saves this season and Richmond's Kolker finished the match with 8 saves, which puts her name in the Spider record book as being tied for fifth with Kristen Samuhel (1998) for the most saves in a single season.
Friday's match marked the eighth meeting between the Spiders and the Rams with the Rams leading the series 4-3-1. This year's contest was a slight revenge for the Spiders after they lost to the Rams last year in the regular season match-up at Rhode Island (2-0) and again in the Atlantic 10 semifinals (1-0).
Although Friday's contest ended the Rams' four-game winning streak, the Rams improve to a 12-game unbeaten streak and remain undefeated in the Atlantic 10 Conference (6-0-1 in the Atlantic 10 and 10-4-2 overall).
Despite a rocky 2005 season, the Spiders celebrated and recognized the numerous accomplishments of their seven seniors, Annette Isham, Hillary Prince, Kaile Partridge, and Liana Wooten, with a brief ceremony just prior to kick off at Friday night's contest. These Spider soccer players have had a remarkable run at Richmond and Albright was enthusiastic with the effort of the seniors in Friday's match. "It was a wonderful senior night. I am so proud of the way they played. It was a great college soccer game; not quite enough for a win, but a great night for Richmond."
Freshman Annette Isham with two goals each. In addition, senior Susan Darrah, sophomore Christine Wrublesky (Langhorne, Pa.), and freshmen Sarah Hilt and Susan Boyer (Paoli, Pa.) follow with one goal each.
Following Friday's contest, the Spiders will look to continue their almost two-year unbeaten-at-home streak (since August 2004 against James Madison) for one last match as they battle the Massachusetts Minutewomen (8-8-1 overall and 5-3-0 in the Atlantic 10) in their season finale on Sunday, Oct. 30 at 1 p.m. at First Market Stadium.
