Sept. 13, 2008

Box Score

BERKELEY - Carolina Bistue converted her penalty stroke to give California a 3-2 shootout victory over No. 19 Albany on Saturday afternoon at Maxwell Family Field. The game's final score as well as the shootout ended 3-2, with Cal earning a team goal for Bistue's penalty stroke. The Great Danes had taken a 2-0 first-half lead before the Golden Bears clawed back on second-half goals by seniors Andrea Lo and Katie Knoche to send the game to overtime. Cal's record improved to 5-1 with the non-conference win, while Albany fell to 3-2.

"I was thinking that this is a really good baptism for the team, to realize what the next level was about," Cal head coach Shellie Onstead said about her team trailing 2-0 late in the first half. "I'm really proud of the way they stepped up in the second half.

"Last year that happened to us a couple of times. It's really nice to see that my team understands it can do that now to another team and that they're going to fight right till the end. It was an exciting moment."

Albany had taken a 1-0 lead on strokes after Michele Polizois converted the first chance. After a miss on each side, Cal senior midfielder Ashley Glosz tied the score at 1-1 with her stroke. Two more misses later, Christina Patrick scored to give Albany a 2-1 short-lived lead, as Lo tapped in the next stroke to make the score 2-2.

A miss by Albany's Ashlyn Bach set up Bistue for a chance at the game-winning goal. The jubilant Bears converged on the senior defender after she scored to end the game.

Cal sophomore forward Natalie Nurnberg had a golden chance to end the match in the first "sudden-victory" overtime, moving into the circle, drawing goalkeeper Ashley Ross off her line and firing past the diving goalie in the 83rd minute. But Ashley Carr made a defensive save to keep the Great Danes alive.

Each team had one more chance to win in the second overtime, but Ross saved a shot by Glosz in the 92nd minute and Cal senior goalie Kelly Knoche stopped a Bach shot in the 93rd minute to send the game to strokes.

After Bistue recorded a defensive save on a Nicole Savage shot in the 14th minute, Patrick gave the Great Danes a 1-0 lead by knocking in a rebound in the 21st minute. Megan Springmeyer, assisted by Sarah Deane, scored in the 29th minute to push Albany's lead to 2-0, which it took into halftime.

The Great Danes outshot Cal, 7-5, in the first half.

A fired up Cal squad took the field in the second half. Lo scored her goal in the 43rd minute off a Nurnberg assist to make the score 2-1.

Glosz set up teammate Katie Knoche's tying goal with just seven seconds remaining in regulation, passing across the middle of the circle to the senior forward, who scored past Ross to send the game into overtime knotted at 2-2 and set up Bistue's heroics in penalty strokes.

Both goalies, and defenses, made clutch saves during the game, as Kelly Knoche wound up with seven saves and Ross had six.

"Kelly had a fantastic game," Onstead said. "She had some saves even during regulation time that were amazing."

Cal takes next week off before flying to the Midwest to take on Michigan on Sept. 25, Michigan State on Sept. 27 and Northwestern on Sept. 28.

GAME SUMMARY

Goal Summary
Albany - Christina Patrick 20:10
Albany - Megan Springmeyer (Sarah Deane) 28:45
Cal - Andrea Lo (Natalie Nurnberg) 42:41
Cal - Katie Knoche (Ashley Glosz) 69:53

Penalty Strokes

Albany		Polozois/Y, Lindsey/N, Simpson/N, Patrick/Y, Bach/N

California	Moffitt/N, Glosz/Y, Ka. Knoche/N, Lo/Y, Bistue/Team GWG



Goals by Period
	         1	2	1OT	2OT	Pen. Strokes	F
Albany	         2	0	0	0	0		2
California	1	0	0	0	1		3


Shots by Period
	         1	2	1OT	2OT	F
Albany	         7	4	0	1	12
California	5	4	4	1	14


Penalty Corners by Period
	         1	2	1OT	2OT	F
Albany	         4	1	0	0	5
California	2	1	1	0	4


Saves by Period
	         1	2	1OT	2OT	F
Albany	         4	0	1	1	6
California	3	3	0	1	7


Att.: 116.