Yellowjackets 0, Northland 0 (2 OT)
ASHLAND, Wis.: There's a dog fight going on to reach the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference women's soccer playoffs, and the Yellowjackets are right in the thick of it. Heading into Wednesday's match at Northland, who also finds itself in the thick of the battle for a playoff spot, the Yellowjackets knew they needed the three points to keep pace with three other teams in the post-season hunt.
The good news is the Yellowjackets came home without a loss, but the bad news is they came home without a win, either.
The Yellowjackets and Lumberjills played 110 minutes and decided nothing, settling for a 0-0 double-overtime draw at Ponzio Stadium in Ashland. The tie moved Northland into sole possession of third place in the U.M.A.C. standings with 19 points, and at the same time dropped the Yellowjackets into sixth place with 16 points. They now trail Bethany Lutheran and Minnesota Morris, who are tied for fourth place with 18 points. It also sets up a win and get in the post-season when the Yellowjackets take on Morris Saturday.
Northland came out firing early and put three shots on goal in the opening five minutes. They had four shots on goal before the match was 15 minutes old, and each time they were turned away by Yellowjacket goalkeeper
Madison Gutekunst (Mound, Minn./Mound Westonka). From there the Yellowjacket defense tightened considerably, giving the Lumberjills just two shots on goal the rest of the way.
There was no score as the teams headed to halftime, and as the second half unfolded, shots favored the Lumberjills 12-2. The teams reached the 60th minute and it was as if the Yellowjackets flipped a switch. From there the 'Jackets played with a sense of urgency and began to press the issue on offense. Still, goalkeeper Megan Jordan continued to shut the 'Jackets down and after 90 minutes the score remained 0-0.
The Yellowjackets outshot the Lumberjills a combined 6-1 in the overtime periods, but again came away empty, and after 110 minutes each team left with a point in the U.M.A.C. standings.
For the match Northland outshot the Yellowjackets 16-14. Shots on goal favored the Yellowjackets 7-6.
Annah Schussman (Bemidji, Minn./Bemidji) led the Yellowjackets with four shots, while
Claire Smith (Hayward, Wis./Hayward) had three shots and two shots on goal. Gutekunst finished the day with six saves.
Up Next: The Yellowjackets (6-10-2, 5-5-1 U.M.A.C.) will try to jump into the U.M.A.C. playoffs when they travel to Minnesota Morris Saturday, October 27. The match is set to get underway at 3:30 p.m.
