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UW-Eau
Claire Outlasts UW-Oshkosh in Eight Rounds of Penalty Kicks
Box
Score
It took 120 minutes and eight rounds of penalty kicks, but UW-Eau Claire
finally outlasted UW-Oshkosh to advance to the finals of the Wisconsin
Intercollegiate Athletic Conference women�s soccer tournament Friday in
Stevens Point.
After 90 minutes of regulation and 30 minutes of sudden death overtime,
the teams advanced to a shootout. After five rounds of penalty kicks, the
teams were still tied 4-4 before the Blugolds finally won after three rounds
of sudden death penalty shots.
UW-Eau Claire�s Maleia Damato finished with the eventual game-winning
kick after shooting first in the eighth round. UW-Oshkosh�s Katy Werginz
then fired over the top of the goal as the Blugolds won to advance to the
finals for the seventh time in the 10-year history of the tournament. UW-Eau
Claire will meet UW-Stevens Point in the finals and the Blugolds have lost
all six previous championship game appearances to the Pointers.
Three goals were scored in the first 15 minutes of the match before
UW-Oshkosh tied the game with 9:18 left. Karin Reinke had a corner kick that
Melissa Gruber put in to tie the game for the Titans. Gruber had an
outstanding chance to win the game on a breakaway with one minute left in
regulation, but Blugolds� goalie Erin Leschensky made the save.
UW-Eau Claire, which lost 1-0 in double overtime
to the Titans earlier this season, outshot UW-Oshkosh 19-11. The match was
the fifth penalty kick shootout in the 10-year history of the WIAC
tournament and UW-Eau Claire�s first shootout since 1993 when the Blugolds
beat UW-La Crosse. UW-Oshkosh played in its first-ever penalty kick
shootout.
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