UT women's soccer wins D-II title

By MATT FOSTER, Special to the Times
Published December 2, 2007

ORANGE BEACH, Ala. - The Tampa women's soccer team won its first NCAA Division II championship, beating Franklin Pierce in a shootout Saturday.

The two teams played through two overtimes with a scoreless tie before entering the shootout, which the Spartans won 3-1. Ashley Flateland scored the clinching goal.

"I just didn't want to be the one to miss," Flateland said. "I kept thinking about how I'm not going to be the one to miss."

At the start of the match, it seemed as though the lightning offense Tampa (19-2-4) had employed against top-ranked Grand Valley State on Thursday was nowhere to be seen.

Instead, Tampa and Franklin Pierce started what would become a war of attrition.

With 36 minutes remaining in the first half, Tampa's Marissa Bernard nearly scored after fighting to get in position, only to have it blocked by Ravens goalie Brittany Ester. Tampa went on to take two more shots in the first half to no avail.

Only minutes into the second half, the Spartans came out with the same intensity seen in the semifinal, as Nicole Murphy passed to Alison Penland for a shot, but Franklin Pierce managed another save.

The majority of the second half was spent in Ravens territory, with Tampa keeping the pressure on and taking four more shots that never found the net.

"They keep on going," Tampa coach Gerry Lucey said. "They keep plugging away. All the credit goes to the players. They just keep pushing themselves."

The Ravens opened up the second overtime far more aggressive than they had been, making two drives up to the Tampa goal but were forced out by the solid Spartan defense both times.

The Spartans were able to take control of the match in the last few minutes but were unable to score a goal after two shots.

During the shootout, Franklin Pierce took the first shot only to have it blocked by Shannon Aitken's solid defense at the net.

Shelby Kuni was next for Tampa, scoring the first shootout goal, followed by Megan Tobin. After Franklin Pierce's Laura Stockdale scored, Flateland clinched it.

[Last modified December 1, 2007, 22:41:04]