Bulldogs drop double OT nailbiter Thursday

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – In yet another hard fought match, the Bryant University women's soccer team fell to a very tough UMass team, 1-0, in double overtime Thursday night at Bulldog Soccer Field.

Seventeen seconds into the second overtime period, the Minutewomen (1-1-1) attacked quickly off the whistle, wasting little time advancing into Bulldog territory. On the left side of the box Laura Johns sent a strike towards the Bryant (1-2) goal which was pushed aside by sophomore goalkeeper Kaylan Conrad (Avon, Conn.), only to be cleaned up right in front of the net by Megan Burke.

"UMass is a very good team, and their record isn't indicative of how dangerous they really are," said Bryant head coach Chris Flint. "We were not good in the first half, however there are a lot of positives with how we responded in the second half and overtime.

"The play didn't materialize into good quality scoring chances, but when you compare the first half to the second half, it's night and day."

The Minutewomen outshot the Bulldogs, 24-5, with 11 shots on goal, but the gritty Bryant defensive unit kept the aggressive UMass attack off the board for most of the match.

Despite being outshot, the Black and Gold had their chances on the offensive end. In the 42nd minute, sophomore forward Melaina Aglieco (Rocky Hill, Conn.) and junior forward Scout Benson (Lynnfield, Mass.) connected on a nice give-and-go down the right sideline, however strong UMass defending thwarted the promising attack. And in the 57th minute, junior Allison DeBenedictis (Norwell, Mass.) delivered a beautiful ball into the box off a set piece, which sophomore Abigail Smith (Kingston, N.H.) was able to get a head on, just narrowly missing the net.

"I think we're defending well, but we are struggling to create that final chance on the offense end," added Flint. "Kaylan [Conrad] is playing phenomenal in net, but we need to be better in the final third, creating opportunities that result in scoring chances."

Conrad continued her tremendous play between the pipes on Thursday, making a career-high 11 saves in over 100 minutes of play. Through three games this season, Conrad is allowing just 0.64 goals per contest and stopping nearly 90 percent of opponent's shots on goal.

Looking ahead, the Bulldogs will have the rest of the weekend to regroup before returning to action on Tuesday when they host Holy Cross for a 3 p.m. match in Smithfield.

"Holy Cross has been a one-goal game each of the last two seasons," said Flint. "So if we can find a way to put a few balls in the back of the net I think the future will be bright for us."

For links to live stats and streaming video of Tuesday's match and all the latest news on the Bryant University women's soccer team, visit BryantBulldogs.com.