Final Stats
TOLEDO, OH - Toledo kept its hopes alive for hosting a first-round match in the upcoming Mid-American Conference Tournament with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Eastern Michigan at Scott Park on Friday afternoon.
With the victory, the Rockets improve to 6-7-3 overall and 5-2-1 in MAC play. They remain in second place in the league standings with a .688 MAC-winning percentage and trail only front-runner Ball State, who owns a .722 winning percentage. The Cardinals claimed a 1-0 victory at Northern Illinois earlier today. The top four teams in the final regular-season standings host teams five through eight in the quarterfinal round on Sunday, Oct. 29 at campus sites, with the highest-remaining seed among the four survivors hosting the semifinals (Nov. 3) and championship (Nov. 5).
The first 45 minutes on today's match was evenly played and both teams had their share of scoring opportunities, but neither squad could put the ball in the back of the net.
The Midnight Blue and Gold had the first chance to score only 4:54 into the match when sophomore Annie Sullivan made a cross to classmate Laura Mecklenborg, who quickly blasted a shot on goal that forced EMU goalkeeper Monique Budani to make a diving stop.
Later in the half, UT was presented with another golden opportunity to take the lead. Junior Suzi Siwinski perfectly bent a corner kick in towards the EMU goal, but an Eagles' defender blocked it with her chest just before the ball crossed the goal line. Unfortunately for the Rockets, the ball bounced directly to Budani, who corralled it and kept the score tied at 0-0.
Eastern Michigan's (6-8-0, 3-6-0 MAC) best chance to score in the opening half came at 34:50, as the visitors had two players directly in front of the UT goal and the ball was right at their feet, but the Rockets' defense cleared it off the goal line and made the score 0-0 at the intermission.
In the second stanza, the Rockets again had the first scoring chance and this time they took advantage. Freshman Molly Cornwell set up the tally with a perfectly placed corner kick into the middle of the EMU goalbox. A UT player got her head on the initial cross, but it was blocked away. Fortunately for Toledo, senior Sarah Hazenfield was right there to head it just under the crossbar for her first goal of the season at 56:31.
Just as quickly as the Rockets had taken the lead, EMU countered with a tally by Deana Kinter at 61:55. The Eagles' midfielder took a pass from Maggie Christensen and was all alone about 25 yards from the UT goal. From there, she perfectly slid a shot to the far post just under the outstretched reach of senior goalkeeper Jen Whipple for the equalizer.
Knowing they needed a victory to keep pace in the MAC race, the Rockets did not give up the fight, but rather pushed forward and scored the eventual game-winning goal at 78:34 on a penalty kick by Cornwell. The Pickerington, OH native was tackled in the EMU goal box by Budani to set up the score. Cornwell now leads the team with four goals on the season and is a perfect 2-for-2 on penalty kicks.
Toledo finished with a 17-9 edge in shots, including 8-1 in the second half. Budani was credited with eight saves, while Whipple tallied only one.
The Rockets return to action on Sunday, as they host Central Michigan on "Senior Day" at Scott Park. The opening whistle is slated for 1:00 p.m.
TOLEDO 2, Eastern Michigan 1
UT: S. Hazenfield (Unassisted), 56:31
EMU: D. Kinter (Christensen), 61:55
UT: M. Cornwell (Penalty kick), 78:34
SHOTS: UT 17, EMU 9
SAVES: UT 1, EMU 8
CORNER KICKS: UT 5, EMU 7
FOULS: UT 10, EMU 5
