NEWBERG, Ore. – The George Fox women's soccer team scored early off the foot of leading scorer
Becca Kozak – who has two goals in the last three games – as the Bruins ended with a 1-1 draw against the Willamette Bearcats.
How It Happened
The Bruins shot early and often in Sunday's contest, recording their first shot just three minutes into the game. The Bruins put two shots up before Kozak scored her goal in the sixth minute, putting Fox up, 1-0. The Bruins managed six more shots after the early score, but couldn't score again in the half. The Fox defense sustained four shots from the Bearcats, but only one of those three was on goal, a testament to the defensive effort that Fox put forth in the half.
GFU dominated the possession game again in the second half, keeping the ball in the Willamette half for much of the frame. It looked like Fox would control the game until the final whistle, but after an offside in the 80th minute, the Bearcats were able to push the ball deep into Fox territory. The Bearcats would score the equalizer in the 84th minute, leaving Fox with less than six minutes to take the lead back. The Bruins created two scoring opportunities, one for Kozak that missed wide left, and another for freshman
Liv Haima, which was saved by the Bearcats keeper in the 89th minute. The final whistle blew with the score at 1-1, giving both teams a tack in the draw column.
Top Performances
Becca Kozak scored her fifth goal of the season, and
Liv Haima had three shots on goal.
Coach's Thoughts
"What a game. As we expected they would, Willamette keeps getting better," Bruin head coach
Laura Schott said, "I love these Bruins. We are learning hard things right now, and the fact that we get to be frustrated and hard-working and messy and together still find joy all at the same time is what I love about coaching here. Looking forward to our Wednesday game."
What It Means
GFU now sits at 2-3-3, (0-2-2 NWC), and Willamette is now 0-5-2 (0-2-1 NWC).
What Comes Next
The Bruins play a midweek game against Lewis and Clark on Wednesday, Sep. 27th, with kick-off at 5 p.m.
