MOSCOW, Idaho – Both teams had chances but solid play from both goalkeepers, and defensive units in general, led to the Vandals (4-4-1) drawing with Seattle U. (5-2-1), 0-0, on Sunday afternoon at Guy Wicks Field.
“I'm very proud of our team. We challenged them before kickoff that we wanted this one to be our best to this point, and they did that today,” said head coach Derek Pittman. “We didn't score a goal today, but we were very dangerous on the attack when we needed to be. We were exceptional on defense. I thought we did an excellent job in limiting Seattle U.
“I'm very proud of our team for fighting all the way to the bitter end to get a very important tie for us. The shutout goes to our entire roster. I'm very proud of how our forwards defended, how our midfielders did. Our back line was very sharp today against a very good Seattle U. team.”
Josilyn Daggs had the first major chance for the Vandals, coming in the 16th minute. Daggs picked up a pass on the right side and brought the ball into the 18-yard box, where she fired in a shot. The shot took a deflection before ultimately being saved by the Seattle U. keeper. The rebound found its way to the feet of Kayla Watanabe, but the freshman forward had a tough angle and couldn't get it past the keeper.
The Vandals thought they opened the scoring in the 17th minute, but the goal was called back after Watanabe was deemed offside. Alyssa Lloyd flicked-on a header, off a deep throw from Daggs, that Watanabe one-timed into the net, but the play was voided by the offside call.
The Vandals played with the wind in the second half and took advantage of the unpredictable conditions, taking several long-range shots. Claire Johnson lined up a shot from 35-plus yards out in the 75th minute, forcing the Seattle U. goalkeeper to make a tremendous tip-save off of the cross bar. Moments later, Chloe Bell took a deep shot of her own. The goalkeeper bobbled the save, but the Vandals were called for a foul before they could pounce on the rebound.
Seattle U. had a chance to steal the win in the 84th minute, but Madison Moore came up big with a header inside the Vandals' 6-yard box to keep the game scoreless.
Idaho controlled the pace for the majority of the first overtime, but couldn't find the back of the net. Bell had a pair of opportunities in the second extra frame, but both shots went wide, the second only barely.
“Chloe is an important person for us in this program, so to get her back and get some playing time under her belt is great,” Pittman said. “She's still a little rusty, but she provides a spark for us. She has a great energy about herself, she can create some dangerous chances and she almost won it for us in overtime. To be able to have her, providing some more depth in the midfield, that's a very good midfield for us.”
Seattle U. had the best chance in overtime, coming in the 108th minute. After moving the ball up the right side, the ball found its way to a Redhawk forward inside the 18. She turned and fired, but Amanda Poertner made a fantastic save to seal the draw.
“She's [Poertner] maturing,” said Pittman. “We've put her in some difficult situations for a freshman. We challenged her after Arkansas State and after Memphis and I thought she had a really good weekend for us. She made a lot of big saves, none bigger than that one at the end. She's a big-time goalkeeper. She's a gamer for us. She's continuing to learn and it's been great to have a very good goalkeeper as the last line.”
Shots were tied on the day, at 16-16, but the Vandals had eight shots on goal to the Redhawks' seven.
The draw is the first result for Idaho against Seattle U. in program history. The Vandals had previously been 0-9-0 against the Redhawks.
Big Sky play begins on Friday, when the Vandals travel to Idaho State to take on the Bengals at 3 p.m. (Pacific). Check back with GoVandals.com for more information as the game approaches.
“We took a huge stride forward today,” Pittman said. “There were a lot of positives to take from today's game moving forward into conference play. Everybody's undefeated now. It's going to be a situation where we need to be ready to battle against two good opponents. Every point matters. I think the lesson our kids learned today is that even a tie is a great result. A point on the road in Big Sky play is huge. That's what we'll take from today.”
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For more information on Idaho Athletics, visit GoVandals.com. Fans can also find Idaho on Twitter and Instagram, @Idaho_Vandals, or on Facebook by searching Idaho Vandals.
