 | | | 1st | 2nd | F | | Minnesota | 0 | 2 | 2 | | Ohio State | 1 | 0 | 1 |
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| Scoring Summary | | Time | Team | Scored by | Assisted by | | 12:43 | OSU | Agnew | Prince | | 66:52 | UMN | Squires | Helverson, Burnett | | 79:05 | UMN | Kolander | _______ | | | | |
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| Team Statistics | | | UMN | OSU | | • Shots | 16 | 9 | | • Corner Kicks | 4 | 2 | | • Saves | 1 | 2 | | • Fouls | 14 | 10 |
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Sept. 17, 2015 Box Score
COLUMBUS, Ohio - The University of Minnesota women's soccer team opened up Big Ten play with an exciting 2-1 victory over the Ohio State Buckeyes on Thursday night at the Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.
With the win, the Maroon and Gold move to 6-1-2 overall and 1-0-0 in the conference.
"The team believed in everything we were doing the entire time and we found a way to get it done," said head coach Stefanie Golan. "At the end of the day, the score could have been a 4-2 game with the opportunities and good looks that both us and Ohio State were creating."
In the first half, the Buckeyes would get an early lead as junior Lindsay Agnew scored from 15-yards out off an assist from fellow junior Nichelle Prince, as junior goalkeeper Tarah Hobbs came out of the net for a save that would come out of her control, allowing Agnew to score.
"Hobbs had made a great save, everything had been going our way and we were really building momentum, so that goal was a bummer, but I think it shows a lot about us that we were able to rebound even with finishing those first 45 minutes behind on the scoreboard," said junior co-captain Simone Kolander.
"Going into halftime, we felt like we had gotten a little bit unlucky," said Golan. "They were able to score off the one good opportunity that they had off the save the got away from Tarah. We knew however, that we were the better team and that we had to continue to execute and the one thing that we had to tighten was our defensive in the press."
Minnesota would tally 10 shots within the first half, along with one corner kick and six fouls. Ohio State notched two shots, one of which resulted in their lone goal of the night along with a corner kick, two saves and four fouls.
Coming out in the second half, the Gophers were determined to stay true to their team word and mindset of remaining "Unbreakable" and that they did.
In the 66th minute, sophomore Sydney Squires scored the equalizer with a double assist from senior co-captain Haley Helverson who found service from sophomore Tori Burnett. Squires found possession at the top of the box and finished from 18-yards from the right post.
"We came out with a fire in the second half and we just knew that the goals were coming," said Squires. "I have been missing a lot of shots lately, so finally scoring in a game where it really matters was huge."
With 11 minutes left to play with both teams knotted a 1-1, Kolander scored the game-winning goal from 6-yards out off her own rebound, bringing the final score to 2-1.
"On both sides of the ball we were relentless tonight and created a lot more chances than they did and that ended up working for us in the end," said Kolander.
"Ohio State is very choreographed from what they want to do on the attack and when we shut it down, they couldn't adjust enough," said Golan. "We frustrated them to a really high level and Sydney and Simone capitalized with great goals because of it."
In the second half, the Gophers notched six shots, three corner kicks and tallied eight fouls. The Buckeyes outshot Minnesota by one with seven, earned one corner kick opportunity and had six fouls.
"This win feels fantastic," said Golan. "In my four years coaching at Minnesota, we've started our Big Ten play on the road which, is really tough to do. The Big Ten, from top to bottom, is a really strong conference and it's tough to come by a win regardless. To start off on the road and against a team like Ohio State, is testament to what our team can do. We like to come in as the underdog and find a way to prove to people that we're good too."
"This is a huge weekend for us," said Squires. "We're playing two of the top teams in the Big Ten so if we can pull of two wins, we should be confident in every single game we go into from here on out. We couldn't have asked for a better way to start things out and we're ready to go."
LOOKING AHEAD
Moving forwards with Big Ten play, the Maroon and Gold will travel to University Park, Pa. to face the No. 4-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions. The following weekend, Minnesota will host Purdue on Friday. Sept. 25 for a 7:00 p.m. match and Indiana Hoosiers for a 1:00 p.m. game on the Sunday, Sept. 20.
FOLLOW THE GOPHERS
Are you following the Gophers on the road or from home? Make sure to follow @GopherSoccer on Twitter and use the team's new hashtag #Unbreakable. You can also check for updates on Facebook and Instagram by "liking" Golden Gopher Soccer on Facebook or following the Gophers on Instagram.
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