The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Colorado
Soccer drops tough 3-2 overtime decision to No. 23 Colorado in Big 12 semifinals
11.04.2005 | Soccer
SAN ANTONIO -- After falling behind by two goals with 66 minutes left, goalkeeper Dianna Pfenninger completed Texas' comeback with her first-career goal in the 89th minute, but the team's joy was short-lived as the Buffaloes scored at the 1:06 mark of overtime to earn a 3-2 victory over UT in front of 1,157 fans during the semifinals of the 2005 Big 12 Championship at the Blossom Athletic Complex on Friday, Nov. 4.
With the loss, the Horns (11-8-1) are eliminated from the Big 12 Championship, while Colorado (12-6-3) advances to the tournament championship game against No. 10 Texas A&M on Sunday, Nov. 6 at 1 p.m. Central. The Longhorns will now wait to find out if they will receive an at-large bid to the upcoming NCAA Tournament on Monday, Nov. 7.
Although the Longhorns picked up the first few shots of the match, Colorado took advantage of a turnover in Texas' half of the field when Katie Griffin stole a clearance and chipped it over the head of Pfenninger (Sugar Land, Texas) for a 1-0 lead in the 18th minute. The Buffs then looked to increase their advantage a few minutes later when Fran Munnelly ripped a shot just outside of the 18-yard box, but the blast hit off the crossbar and Pfenninger was able to clear the rebound to keep it a 1-0 game. With the Horns trying to answer, CU produced another chance on a counter with just over 10 minutes remaining in the opening period when Allison Kidd got loose in the box and laced a shot toward an open net that UT defender Stephanie Logterman (Austin, Texas) cleared off the line. Over the final minutes of the half, Texas again pressured the Colorado end, but could not break through against the Buffaloes' defense as it remained a one-goal contest at halftime.
In the second period, the Longhorns continued to hold the ball in CU's end, but could not penetrate the Buff's defensive line early on in order to create shots. Then, in the 66th minute, Griffin broke in behind the UT defense on a slotted pass from Nikki Keller and managed to get the ball around a closing Pfenninger to push Colorado on top by a score of 2-0. Not backing down, the Horns continued to battle in Colorado's end and eventually cut the CU lead in half when Kasey Moore (Mission Viejo, Calif.) headed a cross from Amy Burlingham (Costa Mesa, Calif.) into the upper right corner of the net at 75:29. Looking to answer, Colorado had Keller move in on a breakaway with just over five minutes remaining, but Pfenninger came off her line and made a diving stop to keep the Horns within one goal. Then, with just under two minutes remaining, Pfenninger launched a free kick from midfield into the Colorado box that bounced inside the six yard line and into the back of the net to knot the game at 2-2. While Texas received another shot from midfield off the foot of Priscilla Fite (Irving, Texas) in the waning seconds, CU goalkeeper Kirstin Radlinski handled it to send the match into overtime.
In overtime, Colorado pushed the ball deep into the Longhorns' end from the opening kickoff. Then, after a throw-in, Kathryn Grandinetti found Kidd on the right side of the 18-yard box where she fired a shot just out of the reach of Pfenninger to lift the Buffaloes to victory. While Pfenninger shoulder the tough loss despite making a career-best nine saves, Radlinski earned the win with a five-save effort.
While Griffin paced the Colorado 17-shot attack with two goals on a game-high five shots, Texas' had its offense led by Moore, who netted her fifth goal of the year while taking a match-high five shots of her own. Of note, UT pulled off its second-half comeback with both of its leading scorers on the bench due to injury and without being able to make an offensive substitution over the final 46-plus minutes.
With the end of their Big 12 Championship run, the Longhorns will now await word from the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee on receiving an at-large bid to the national tournament which begins on Friday, Nov. 11. The entire 64-team field for the 2005 NCAA Tournament will be announced on ESPN News on Monday, Nov. 7 at 4 p.m. Central.
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