MEADVILLE, Pa. - Visiting Fredonia handed Allegheny its second consecutive overtime defeat, topping the Gators 2-1 at a soggy Robertson Athletic Complex.
Despite out-shooting Fredonia (5-5) 22-15, including a 10-3 margin in the second stanza, the Gators (8-5) saw the Devils score a late equalizer in the second half, before sealing the win with a rebound goal in the fourth minute of overtime.
The teams traded shots over the first 17 minutes, but neither the Gators or Blue Devils had many prime scoring opportunities. Of the first nine shots combined between the two squads, seven either sailed wide or were blocked. The Gators then looked to pick up momentum in the 19th minute, putting three shots on goal, but each were turned aside by Fredonia keeper Lindsey Forness.
With just over 22 minutes left in the first half, Allegheny's
Jessie Thiessen dribbled through the Blue Devil back line, and chipped a ball into the goal box to teammate
Tori Delzer. Delzer won a footrace with Forness to the ball, dodged a tackle, and shot it into the empty net from five yards out to give the Gators a 1-0 lead.
Ten minutes later, Fredonia looked to counter, receiving a pair of solid opportunities following a corner, but Gator keeper
Gabby Curtis turned away a pair of point-blank shots from less than five feet out to keep the Gators in front. Fredonia kept the majority of possession over the closing minutes of the half, but the Gator defense blocked two shots, and Curtis made two more saves, to send the game into the intermission with Allegheny holding on to the one-goal lead.
Over the first 45 minutes, the two teams combined for 23 shots (Allegheny 12, Fredonia 11), with Curtis posting five saves and Forness four.
The Gators were strong out of the intermission, maintaining possession for long stretches of time. The hosts were unable to add on to the lead, however, as Forness made four saves and the Blue Devil defense blocked four shot attempts over the first 20 minutes to keep the score at 1-0.
The Blue Devils were able to find the scoreboard in the 71st minute. Kristie Kleine led a rush down the sideline, and chipped a ball through the defense to teammate Katie Kleine, who lofted a shot from the top corner of the box over the fingertips of Curtis to tie the game at 1-all. Allegheny looked to answer, tallying four of the final five shots in regulation time, but were unable to find the net, and the game entered overtime.
Allegheny owned possession over the early stages of the extra session, before Fredonia made its only possession of the overtime count. Following an Allegheny foul, a Fredonia free kick was sent deep into the box. After the ball was deflected away from the doorstep by a Gator defender, it went right to Katie Kleine, who tallied her second goal of the day from 10 yards out to end the game with 6:20 left in overtime.
The Gators owned a slim 6-5 advantage in corner kicks on the day, but held a 22-15 advantage in shots, with Forness making eight saves to earn the win.
The Gators will now have a week long layoff before they look to snap their two-game losing streak when they host North Coast Athletic Conference foe Oberlin on Tues. Oct. 14 at 4 p.m. at the Robertson Athletic Complex.
