Box Score MILWAUKEE - The Wisconsin Lutheran College women's soccer team battled to a 2-2 double overtime tie in its conference opener against Benedictine Saturday at Warrior Field.
The Warriors took an early 1-0 lead after Sarah Luebke (Kaukauna, Wis./Fox Valley Lutheran) swooped in and scored on a rebound off of Sarah Kolander's (Brookfield, Wis./Wisconsin Lutheran) shot 8:36 into the game. WLC took its lead into intermission despite being out-shot 8-4. Goalkeeper Kate Gucinski (Appleton, Wis./Fox Valley Lutheran) made four saves in the half.
The Warriors opened up a 2-0 advantage 11 minutes into the second half when Heather Nielsen (Wildwood, Fla./Villages) connected with Cari Westover (Muskego, Wis./Muskego) for her third score of the season.
Benedictine pressured WLC in the second half, out-shooting the home team 17-2. That pressure finally paid off for the Eagles with 23 minutes left in the game with a Jackie Elzakhem goal. With just under four minutes remaining, Tara Tarazoff tied the game off of Rachael Hodison's second assist of the game.
Gucinski added eight more saves in the half to preserve the chance for a Warriors win.
Benedictine (2-5-1, 0-1-1 NACC) carried over its second half momentum into the overtime periods, getting off four shots while blanking WLC. Gucinski continued her impressive play with two more saves to snuff out the Eagles' chance for a win as the game ended in a 2-2 draw.
For the game, the Warriors were out-shot 29-6. Gucinski stopped 14 of the 16 shots she faced, while her BenU counterpart stopped two of the four she faced. Westover led WLC with two shots on goal. Luebke and Stephaney Scott (Slinger, Wis./Kettle Moraine Lutheran) also had shots on goal.
The Warriors (2-5-1, 0-0-1 NACC) travel to face St. Norbert (4-2-2) Wednesday, September 25 in non-conference action. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. in De Pere.
