UConn ends Terriers’ tournament prematurely

The Boston University women’s soccer team’s season came to a heartbreaking end in the first round of the NCAA Tournament Friday night at the hands of the University of Connecticut, 1-0, in double-overtime.

Senior defender Brittany Taylor scored the game-winner in the second overtime session to keep the Huskies’ (11-8-2) NCAA hopes alive. This is the fourth straight year BU (14-6-2) has failed to make it past the first round of the national tournament.

As was the case when the Terriers faced UConn on Sept. 11, the game was a back and forth affair, with each team generating plenty of scoring chances ‘-‘- BU had 18 shots and the Huskies had 12.

‘I thought the game was back and forth for sure,’ BU coach Nancy Feldman said. ‘Each team had momentum at different points and had control of the game, but it kept shifting back and forth.’

Taylor came up with the Huskies’ best first-half scoring opportunity on a shot that trickled through BU senior goalie Janie Reilly’s hands and began to roll toward the goal line. Reilly responded quickly enough to gather the ball before it crossed the line for a score.

‘I saw a girl wide open in the middle and she put a spin on that ball that I wasn’t planning for, which caught me a little off guard,’ Reilly said. ‘I had to scramble for it. I was kind of leaning one way and I had to move really quickly. I got up fast enough cause that was going in. Just trying to keep us in and do whatever I can for my team.’

BU entered the intermission outshooting UConn, 7-4, while trailing on corner kicks, 1-0. The Terriers stepped up the offensive pressure early in the second half, and senior forward Farrell McClernon had two golden opportunities to score.

The first chance came five minutes into the second half. McClernon received the ball on the left side of the box, and after a few dribbles, her shot flew just wide of the bottom right corner of the net.

Six minutes later, McClernon gathered the ball between a couple UConn defenders and fired a shot that was saved by freshman goalie Ally Mancino. Mancino finished the night with five saves, while Reilly had seven of her own.

‘I thought the whole team did great, starting up top with Farrell [McClernon],’ BU senior co-captain Casey Brown said. ‘The team defending starts up top with her and works its way through all the way back. So we get some of the final plays down there and I think everyone showed up and was ready to defend in those big moments, which is huge, and props to them.

‘I think that is awesome. You have Janie [Reilly] right on her line ready to go and stop anything. Credit to the whole team, I think we did a very good job team defending.’

The first overtime session played out much like the first two halves, with BU getting two shots on goal and UConn one, but neither team threatening to net the game winner.

The Huskies took control of the game in the second overtime session, outshooting BU, 4-1, and drawing two corners. A scrum ensued inside BU’s box when Reilly found herself out of position trying to get possession of the ball. UConn junior Elise Fugowski fired a shot, but BU junior defender Corie Halasz intervened and cleared it out of danger.

Less than two minutes later, Taylor gained possession on a pass from junior Kacey Richards and fired a shot into the right side of the net past a diving Reilly, giving the Huskies the overtime win.

Brown expressed the disappointments of the Terriers’ senior class, who came into the NCAA Tournament with very high expectations.

‘Our team really believed in themselves,’ Brown said. ‘They have a lot of confidence and wanted to keep the season going. We were all really enjoying it. We thought this was a year we could win a couple of games.’

Even with their early exit from the tournament, Feldman was very proud of her team’s play throughout the season.

‘It was a great season,’ Feldman said. ‘Absolutely a great season and we are sorry to see it end.’