University Southern California Trojans
USC
Connecticut
Women's Soccer Shocks UConn, 2-1, in Overtime
September 12, 1999 | Women's Soccer
Sept. 12, 1999
LINCOLN, Neb. - Freshman midfielder Ali Fennell's overtime goal lifted the No. 15 USC women's soccer team to its best-ever weekend in soccer history, as her goal gave the Women of Troy a 2-1 victory over No. 12 Connecticut on the final day of the 1999 Husker Fila Invitational, hosted by the University of Nebraska at the Abbott Sports Complex, on Sunday afternoon.
With the win over the Huskies and Friday's 1-0 victory over No. 18 Portland, USC beat two of the country's top soccer powers this weekend. Portland made the 1998 NCAA semifinals while UConn made the quarterfinals.
At 114:05, less than six minutes before the end of overtime, junior midfielder Isabelle Harvey ran down a ball in the right corner. She won the ball, then crossed it into the middle to a wide-open Fennell, who slid it past the goalkeeper for her first collegiate goal.
The game almost didn't reach overtime. Just 2 1/2 minutes before the end of regulation, USC sent all 11 players, including the goalkeeper, into the attacking area for a corner kick. Senior midfielder Kim Clark lifted the ball into the box, and it was headed in by freshman forward Jennifer Prigmore to even the contest at 1-1 at 87:26.
The Huskies had taken a 1-0 lead just 36 seconds before halftime. On a counterattack, sophomore forward Mary-Frances Monroe blasted a left-footed shot off the crossbar and in at 44:24.
"It wasn't pretty, but this is a fantastic result," USC Coach Jim Millinder said. "It really hurt to give away a goal just seconds before overtime. But we stayed with it and kept playing hard. To beat teams of the magnitude of UConn and Portland is just huge for the program. I couldn't be happier for our players."
USC, in the midst of playing six straight top 20 teams, now returns home and will next play No. 11 BYU on Friday (Sept. 17) in the Coliseum at 3 p.m.
USC (4-1) 0 1 0 1 -- 2
UCONN (0-4) 1 0 0 0 -- 1
Scoring: Mary-Frances Monroe (Lacey Toups), UCONN, 44:24, Jennifer Prigmore (Kim Clark), USC, 87:26, Ali Fennell (Isabelle Harvey), USC, 114:05.
Shots: USC 9, UCONN 14 Saves: Lauren Arase (USC) 1, Shanna Caldwell (UCONN) 2
Fouls: USC 17, UCONN 9 Corners: USC 10, UCONN 7 Offsides: USC 2, UCONN 1
