The No. 14 Boston College women's soccer team was in action Sunday, looking for its first win in six matches against the No. 11 Florida State Seminoles.
The first half was a back and forth affair, with both teams having multiple chances to score. BC's first scoring opportunity came in the fifth minute of play, when a Florida State player headed a corner kick taken by midfielder Kelly Henderson out of bounds.
Florida State was then able to create a few scoring opportunities of its own on back-to-back-to-back free kicks from just beyond midfield. After the first kick sailed wide left, BC was able to defend the rest and preserve the scoreless tie.
BC was almost able to get on the board in the 19th minute of play. After a questionable foul at the top of the key, the subsequent kick just missed the outstretched foot of forward Brooke Knowlton.
Florida State went on the attack again with 15 minutes to play in the half. Seminoles forwards Tiffany McCarty and Sanna Talonen both took shots from inside the box that were blocked by the Eagles defense before goalie Jillian Mastroianni was able to secure a shot by midfielder Erika Sutton.
The Seminoles were finally able to break through in the 38th minute of play. Midfielder Tori Huster headed a corner kick from defenseman Sarah Wagenfuhr into the upper left corner of the goal to take a 1-0 lead.
"I talked to the team prior to the game and told them that in a game with two great teams, the game would be won with a small mistake or on a set play," said head coach Alison Kulik. "Unfortunately for us, today the set piece just didn't go our way.
The second half didn't fare much better for the Eagles, as scoring chances were few and far between. BC had opportunities in the 75th minute on back-to-back corners, the first of which was shot just over the crossbar by forward Gina DiMartino.
Florida State's best chance to score came with six minutes to play in the game.
Following a foul by BC, Wagenfuhr took a shot that just missed the foot of Casey Short for what would have been a sure goal.
The Eagles' last chance to tie the game came in the 85th minute. Midfielder Kelly Henderson crossed the ball all the way through the box to forward Natalie Crutchfield, who then fired another cross that was cleared by the Florida State defense.
"At times we did really good things, we just never got a break," Kulik said. "I thought that Chelsea Regan played incredibly well today, both on offense and defense. She did a great job of changing the point of attack on offense. I just don't think that we found her enough to really start generating enough opportunities."
The 1-0 loss makes the Eagles 0-6 all time when against the Seminoles. BC has also never scored a goal against the Florida State defense.
"We're disappointed but happy," Coach Kulik said following the game. "The good news is that we have another tough team coming on Thursday in UNC, and we are looking forward to playing another challenging team."
2008 Woodie Awards
