Columbia
West Chester
Kozlowski's Overtime Goal Lifts Field Hockey Over West Chester
9/10/2010 9:14:00 PM | Field Hockey
WEST CHESTER, Pa. - Sophomore Gabby Kozlowski's goal in the 90th minute proved to be the difference, helping Columbia to a 3-2 win over West Chester on Friday, September 10. With the win, the Lions improve to 3-0, while the Golden Rams suffered their first loss of the season, slipping to 3-1.
"It was a great team performance today," noted head coach Marybeth Freeman. "We had some solid performances from our backfield and middlefield, in addition to some big finishes up front. The team played very composed and played our game the way we have been practicing it. It was a hard fought game, but our team's composure enabled us to maintain the tempo of the game."
Each team scored single tallies in each half forcing the game to overtime. Bridget DeSandis got the Lions on the board first, scoring her second goal of the year just 2:35 into the game. DeSandis collected a pass from her classmate Paige Simmons and buried it past Kristen Arnold to give Columbia a 1-0 lead.
West Chester knotted the score at 1-1 off a corner half way through the first stanza, as the two teams entered the break tied.
Neither team managed to score for nearly 35 minutes, but it was the Golden Rams who took a 2-1 lead on an assisted goal at 51:48. With time running out, junior Carson Christus came up with a huge unassisted goal at 54:40, her first of the season, forcing the game into overtime.
Once again, it was a defensive battle between the two teams, as neither team managed to convert in the first overtime period, despite the Lions outshooting West Chester 4-0. Columbia's Kozlowski scored the go-ahead goal five minutes into the second overtime period to improve the Lions to 3-0.
Columbia held a 7-4 advantage in corners, and outshot the home team 12-4.
The Lions returns to action on Sunday, September 12 when they play Villanova at 2:30 p.m.
