No. 12 JMU Sneaks by No. 8 Towson in Double Overtime
from press release
TOWSON, Md. – Senior midfielder Kim
Griffin (North Harford H.S./Jarrettsville, Md.) scored the
game-winning goal in the second overtime period as 12th-ranked
James Madison University (8-2, 1-0) held off a comeback by
eighth-ranked Towson University (7-3, 1-1) to edge the Tigers by a
10-9 margin in a Colonial Athletic Association game at the
Tigers’ Johnny Unitas® Stadium on Friday night.
Griffin, who also had an assist in the win, tallied an unassisted
goal with 1:14 remaining in the first segment of the second
overtime period to give the Dukes their second win in the last
three games.
“It was a good game, especially since it seemed like we
couldn’t catch a break in the first half,” Towson Coach
Missy Doherty said. “We were 2 for 15 shooting in the first
half and had to come back. We need to be able to shoot the ball
better if we want to win these types of games.
“I thought the girls came back and played a great game
tonight,” Coach Doherty added. “I thought we played
well defensively even when JMU scored the game-winning goal. It
just happened to be a good shot that went in.”
Led by two goals and an assist from sophomore attacker Monica Zabel
(Mount Hebron H.S./Ellicott City, Md.), the Dukes jumped out to a
commanding 5-0 lead in the opening 24 minutes of the first
half.
The Dukes’ defense held Towson without a goal for the first
28 minutes, 15 seconds until junior attacker Jess Dunn (Fallston
H.S./Forest Hill, Md.) scored off a feed from sophomore attacker
Sarah Appelt (The Hun School of Princeton/Garden City, N.Y.),
cutting the deficit to 5-1.
Dunn’s goal ignited a six-goal run for the Tigers, who took a
6-5 lead with 16:06 remaining in the second half. Senior midfielder
Hillary Fratzke (Queen Anne’s County H.S./Centreville, Md.)
scored all three of her goals during the run.
“The team is always fighting back and I never counted them
out,” Coach Doherty said. “We have a number of players
who can step up when they need to. Fortunately, our shots began to
fall and we were able to come back hard.”
However, the Dukes responded with back-to-back goals to regain a
7-6 advantage with 11:55 remaining in regulation. After freshman
attacker Casey Ancarrow (John Carroll School/Jarrettsville, Md.)
scored to tie the game on a free position shot, sophomore attacker
Alex Napoli (River Hill H.S./Highland, Md.) converted a Griffin
feed for her second goal of the season to give James Madison a
one-goal cushion.
The teams traded goals before senior midfielder Nikki Marcinik
(Southern H.S./Deale, Md.) tied the game at 8-8 with her second
goal of the game, scoring off a feed from senior attacker Jacie
Kendall (Souderton Area H.S./Harleysville, Pa.) with 7:34 remaining
in regulation.
The Tigers had a pair of opportunities in the final minute of
regulation to earn the win, but shots by Fratzke and Dunn missed
the goal and the game went into overtime.
Ancarrow gave the Dukes a one-goal lead early in the first segment
of the first overtime period when she scored an unassisted goal
past sophomore goalkeeper Mary Teeters (Centennial H.S./Ellicott
City, Md.). However, Kendall answered early in the second segment
of the period on a free-position shot to tie the game at 9-9.
With time running down in the first overtime period, the Dukes had
two chances to win the game, but Teeters made a pair of saves on
shots by Griffin and Ancarrow to keep the game tied and force the
sudden-victory overtime period.
The Dukes won the draw control to start the second overtime period
and held the ball to set up Griffin’s game-winning goal.
Ancarrow led the Dukes with three goals and two assists while Zabel
contributed two goals with an assist. Senior goalkeeper Morgan
Kelly (St. Mary’s H.S./Annapolis, Md.) made ten saves for the
Dukes, who were outshot by a 30-24 margin. However, James Madison
had a 6-1 shot advantage in the overtime periods.
Fratzke scored three goals for her seventh “hat trick”
of the season in a losing effort for the Tigers. She also moved
into third place on the Tigers’ career goals list with 179
career goals, passing Becky Trumbo, ’06. Marcinik added two
goals with an assist for the Tigers, who had their six-game home
winning streak snapped.
The Tigers will finish their three-game homestand on Sunday
afternoon when they host George Mason at 1 p.m. at Unitas Stadium.
The Patriots dropped a 13-6 decision at Delaware in their CAA
opener on Friday night.
“We need to be ready to regroup on Sunday and bring the same
effort we had tonight into Sunday’s game against George
Mason,” Coach Doherty said. “We have to be able to
finish our shots and regroup for another strong conference
game.”
Meanwhile, the Dukes will travel to Delaware on Sunday afternoon
for a 1 p.m. game against the Blue Hens at Rullo Stadium.
