Box Score

The Benedictine University women's soccer team tied for the first time of the season on Wednesday night at the Village of Lisle/Benedictine University Sports Complex. Benedictine and North Central College played to a 0-0 tie in two overtimes, as each team could not find the back of the net through 110 minutes.

BenU, who now sits at 1-6-1 on the season, managed to come out of the first half tied despite being outshot 9-1 in the first 45 minutes. Jackie Elzakhem, who recorded two of Benedictine's nine shots on the day, took the team's only shot of the half in the game's second minute. Freshman goalkeeper Maddie Frye used a strong defensive effort in front of her to have a solid half, recording four of her eight saves.

"I really want to commend our back six," said Head Coach Mike Boland. "Putting up a clean slate for 110 minutes is quite a feat. Every single detail we talked about in training is all starting to come together and clicking. We were stout against a good offensive team, and everyone did their job."

In the second half, the Eagles were able to generate more offensive chances. North Central outshot the Eagles by just one (7-6) in the half despite attempting three corner kicks. Benedictine used the strong defense off the set pieces to propel the offensive chances, as well as support Frye, who stopped three more shots in the half. 

The first overtime saw North Central attempt two shots in the first five minutes, one of which was halted by Frye. In the game's 97th minute, Danielle Melotte fired a shot toward the upper left corner of the net, and it took a leaping save from NCC goalkeeper Nikki Seiton to keep the game alive. Neither team was able to generate much offense in the second overtime, as a wide shot from Tara Tarazoff was the only attempt either team recorded.

Overall, North Central outshot the Eagles 18-9. For Benedictine, Elzakhem, Melotte, and Megan Anderson each recorded two shots. Tarazoff and Taylor Pokorny also attempted a shot a piece.

"Right off the bat, we covered the ground necessary and put the work rate in," said Boland. "I'm proud of the girls, as we held our standards high and made sure we put in our best effort against a tough North Central team." 

Women's soccer is back on the field for Saturday's homecoming, as the team will oppose the Wisconsin Lutheran College Warriors at noon to open the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference schedule. Live audio, video, and stats will be available at http://portal.stretchinternet.com/benu/.