Thursday, November 5th 2009

By david koots

The women’s soccer season ended on Saturday after being defeated in penalty kicks 4-3 against the top-seeded York Lions. The game ended in a 1-1 draw and following an additional 30 minutes of overtime the game went to a shootout, where York’s last shooter closed out the match. With the win, York now advances to the OUA Final Four.

The game was played in poor conditions with the wind playing a significant role. Most high balls and long shots were drastically affected, forcing both teams to adjust as the game went on.

The teams exchanged early scoring chances but as the half wore on the Lions began to take control and were rewarded in the 27th minute. Nicole Campbell (Scarborough, ON) capitalized on a beautifully placed corner by All-Star Ami Otaki (Kanagawa, Japan). Campbell received the ball at the top corner of the 18-yard box and blasted it into the right corner of the net.

Despite the early goal, the Marauders kept the game close by limiting the number of quality scoring chances by York. In particular, the defence played Otaki extremely well, something that few teams have been able to do all year long. She led the league in goals this year with 14, which was six more than the Waterloo Warriors scored as a team. The Marauders closed out the half on a high note when they took advantage of a throw-in deep in York territory.

McMaster would carry their momentum into the second half and came out ready to play. The team got close to tying it all up when they were rewarded back-to-back free kicks from the edge of York’s 18-yard box but neither kick would result in a goal.

Mac’s pressure finally paid off when in the 68th minute a York defender cleared the ball from deep in her territory straight through her own box and after Mac took control the ball reached Kristen Lowe (Acton, ON) who would score the Marauders’ first goal against the Lions in 2009.

Haley Marler (Ancaster, ON) proved to be a thorn in the Lions side all day as she continually threatened to score on long runs. Marler had a pair of close calls with the Lion’s keeper that culminated in a hard collision that saw both players crash to the ground.

With the score still tied after 90 minutes, a 30 minute overtime period was needed. York winger Nicole Markowitz (Toronto, ON) had the best chance in overtime when she used her speed to get past the defence after a Mac corner was quickly cleared the other way. The Lions would have one final shot to end the game when they were awarded a free kick from a dangerous location right before the end of the overtime period but they failed to capitalize on this chance, sending the game to penalty kicks.

In the shootout, Mac jumped out to an early 2-0 lead when Tara Dawdy (Burlington, ON) and Samantha Batten (Hamilton, ON) both scored with low shots to the corners. Keeper Michelle Spadafora (Dundas, ON) would then shine by stopping the Lions’ first shooter on two separate occasions as the shooter’s first shot was called back due to early movement off the line. But York’s second shooter was Otaki, who lived up to her billing by placing the ball perfectly behind Spadafora.

Marler would shoot next and failed to score after hitting the crossbar, allowing York to tie it up on their next shot. Lowe would give Mac back the lead by executing a perfect chip into the net but after another York score tied the game once again, Maria Cusimano (North York, ON) sailed her shot over the net. This left it up to Lion Gina Kripotos (Vancouver, BC), who scored York’s biggest goal of 2009 to avoid the major upset.

The Lions now advance to the weekend’s Final Four, while the Marauders end a season of highs and lows. Mac started slowly, going 1-3-2 in September before finishing the year as one of the OUA’s hottest teams with a 6-3-1 record in October and handily defeating Western 4-1 in the playoff’s first round. Look for the team to start quickly next year in order to contend with the OUA West’s top teams in the 2010 season.

Tags: Women's Soccer