Sunday, November 10
Fullerton CA
1:00 pm
UC Riverside
1
at
1
Cal State Fullerton (Big West Conference Championship)
Photo by: Martin Agoub
Women's Soccer Battles Fullerton To 1-1 Tie In Title Game, But Titans Advance On PKs
11/10/2013 5:26:00 PM | Women's Soccer
Fullerton—The UC Riverside Women's Soccer Team battled Cal State Fullerton to a 1-1 tie Sunday afternoon in the Big West Conference title match, but the Titans were crowned the champions of the league advancing to the NCAA Tournament on penalty kicks, 2-1 (Box Score).
Nikki McCants put Fullerton up 1-0 in the 13th minute as her header squeaked inside the far post for her third goal of the season.
It looked like that goal might hold up, but the Highlanders continued to press, and with just 3:42 to go in the match, a foul was called in the Titans box, and Tyler Cunningham converted the subsequent penalty kick to tie the score.
The teams combined for just three shots during the two overtime periods sending the match to PKs.
That's when Titans Head Coach Demian Brown made the call to the bullpen bringing in back-up goalkeeper Katie Pulliam to face UC Riverside's penalty kicks. The senior from Grass Valley, CA is making a name for herself as the Mariano Rivera of women's soccer as she came off the bench to stop three UC Irvine penalty kicks in the conference semifinals a year ago. In this year's semis, she blocked two Cal Poly shots to help Fullerton advance to today's championship match.
Pulliam was just as effective Sunday stopping the first three UCR shots, as the Titans built a 2-0 lead after three rounds. The Highlanders fourth attempt, struck by Tyler Cunningham, beat Pulliam, putting the Highlanders on the board 2-1.
After Colleen Ortega drilled the Titans fourth attempt high of the mark, senior Andrea Morales stepped up to the plate needing to score to keep UC Riverside's title hopes alive. But her shot also sailed high, and the Titans celebrated as the 2013 Big West Conference Champions.
It was the second appearance in the title match for the Highlanders who lost to Fullerton in the 2005 championship, 4-1. That season, UC Riverside received an at large big to the NCAA Tournament, where they tied Colorado in the first round only to watch the Buffaloes advance to the second round on PKs.
Nikki McCants put Fullerton up 1-0 in the 13th minute as her header squeaked inside the far post for her third goal of the season.
It looked like that goal might hold up, but the Highlanders continued to press, and with just 3:42 to go in the match, a foul was called in the Titans box, and Tyler Cunningham converted the subsequent penalty kick to tie the score.
The teams combined for just three shots during the two overtime periods sending the match to PKs.
That's when Titans Head Coach Demian Brown made the call to the bullpen bringing in back-up goalkeeper Katie Pulliam to face UC Riverside's penalty kicks. The senior from Grass Valley, CA is making a name for herself as the Mariano Rivera of women's soccer as she came off the bench to stop three UC Irvine penalty kicks in the conference semifinals a year ago. In this year's semis, she blocked two Cal Poly shots to help Fullerton advance to today's championship match.
Pulliam was just as effective Sunday stopping the first three UCR shots, as the Titans built a 2-0 lead after three rounds. The Highlanders fourth attempt, struck by Tyler Cunningham, beat Pulliam, putting the Highlanders on the board 2-1.
After Colleen Ortega drilled the Titans fourth attempt high of the mark, senior Andrea Morales stepped up to the plate needing to score to keep UC Riverside's title hopes alive. But her shot also sailed high, and the Titans celebrated as the 2013 Big West Conference Champions.
It was the second appearance in the title match for the Highlanders who lost to Fullerton in the 2005 championship, 4-1. That season, UC Riverside received an at large big to the NCAA Tournament, where they tied Colorado in the first round only to watch the Buffaloes advance to the second round on PKs.
Day in the Life: Leilani Juan
Monday, May 04
UCR Student-Athletes cheer on our students.
Friday, May 01
UCR Athletics Director Introductory Full Press Conference
Tuesday, March 24
Athletics Director Greg Paules Introductory Presentation Recap
Tuesday, March 24
