FORT MYERS, Fla. – No matter the odds, the Kennesaw State Owls overcame them to advance past top seed FGCU in penalty kicks, 2-1, in the semifinal round of the ASUN Conference Tournament Sunday.
"The word 'proud' doesn't do it justice. I'm blown away by these ladies and their resiliency. That will rank as one of the top comebacks I've ever been a part of as a coach. I'm so thrilled for our team," said Head Coach Benji Walton. "Make no mistake, they are still hungry and are looking forward to making the most out of this opportunity in Nashville."
The Owls (11-7-1) trailed 2-0 heading into the half but emerged from the break with fierce resolve.
In the 52nd minute, ASUN Freshman of the Year Becky Contreras scored her second postseason goal on an assist from senior Emely Sosa.
Less than six minutes later, senior Carly Pressgrove tied the match by pouncing on a loose ball just in front of the box.
Later, with the score knotted at two, the teams faced overtime. Each side had quality looks at a golden goal, but the match entered a second overtime where the score remained stagnant.
For the third time in KSU's ASUN postseason history, the Owls went to penalty kicks. Goalie Tiffany Sornpao began with stops against ASUN Player of the Year Evdokia Popadinova and ASUN Defensive Player of the Year Lindsey Patton.
With each side unsuccessful through two FGCU (11-4-2) tries and one KSU attempt, ASUN First Teamer Isabella Contreras broke through and scored for a 1-0 lead. In the third attempts, both teams scored with Becky Contreras finding the left corner of the net for what would be the deciding goal.
In the fourth attempts, Sornpao knocked down Kara Kyramarios' try, and Kendall Hart missed.
Marjorie Boilesen stepped up to tie in the fifth and final round, but Sornpao again was a brick wall and made her biggest save of the season.
KSU concluded with 20 shots, an 12 on-goal, compared to FGCU's 14 attempts and five on-target. Sornpao had three saves through the 110 minutes of play. The win was KSU's third all-time against the Eagles, and avenged a 1-0 setback on Oct. 10. KSU is now unbeaten over its last five matches.
The Owls will play for their third ASUN Championship on Saturday, Nov. 9 at Lipscomb. KSUOwls.com will post a start time when it is announced by the ASUN.
For more information on Kennesaw State soccer, follow @KSUOwlsSoccer on Twitter and Instagram.
