Women's Soccer advances to OAC Tournament Finals by defeating Otterbein, 2-1

WESTERVILLE--The Ohio Northern women's soccer team upset top seeded Otterbein, 2-1 in the OAC Tournament Semifinals, on a cold and wet Wednesday afternoon at Clements Field.

The Polar Bears, seeded fourth in the tournament, now stand at 12-4-4 on the season, while the Cardinals conclude their season at 13-6.

This will be the eighth apperance for the Polar Bears in the OAC Tournament Finals.

Both teams had a chance to get on the board early.

Sophomore Kristina Klusek had an oppurtunity to score but her shot sailed just wide in the sixth minute.

Morgan Hendrickson had a chance to put Otterbein on the board in the 15th minute, but her shot in the box was knocked away by ONU senior defender Nicole Grant.

The Polar Bears got on the board first at the 37:43 mark, when junior Sami Atkinson headed in a loose ball in the box.

Klusek picked up the assist on the play.

Otterbein would answer just over a minute later, when Lindsay Hendersen hit the crossbar.

The ball would come back out and Jillian Strimbu put it in the net to tie things up at 1-1.

Klusek would then put the Polar Bears back on top early in the second half, when she dribbled through the defense and beat the goalie to the lower right corner.

The Polar Bears had a chance to expand their lead in the 65th minute, but senior Tara Tokar's shot went wide.

Otterbein looked to respond getting a breakaway, but freshman Alex Hazelet stepped in front and knocked the ball away from the streaking Cardinal player.

The Cardinals were on the attack for the last 30 minutes of the match, but the Northern defense did not back down and limited the Otterbein chances.

Senior goalie Erin Waehner (12-3-4) made one save on the afternoon.

Dana Strimu made one save for the Cardinals and falls to 13-6.

"I am very proud of the girls today," said head coach Mark Batman. "This is a tough place to play and the conditions were not the best. We just kept battling through and stayed strong all match."

Both teams fired nine shots on the afternoon, with the Polar Bears holding a slim 3-2 advatage on shots on goal.

The Northern defense was solid all day, knocking away the nine corner kicks that Otterbein took.

Ohio Northern will be in action again on Saturday, when they seek the school's first ever OAC Tournament Championship against John Carroll. The match is scheduled to begin at 2 pm at the ONU Soccer Field.