Comeback Falls Short for Ospreys

Box Score

8/28/2009 10:11:48 PM
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - University of North Florida fell behind the Georgia Panthers 4-1 on Friday night in its first match of the Osprey Classic, but battled back with two goals by senior Katelin Swift to cut the deficit to 4-3. Unfortunately, the comeback ended there as UNF fell by one goal to the Panthers.

After we settled in, I liked the way we moved the ball,” said Head Coach Linda Hamilton. “We created lots of chances, and we were aggressive.”

Swift led the Ospreys on the night recording a pair of goals. The two goals were her first of the year. Ironically, Swift scored her first goal of the 2008 season against Georgia State and went on to finish the year with 10 goals on the season.

“These freshman are very important to our development,” said Hamilton. What’s nice about these non-conference games, is that it gives us opportunities to get them in and gain the experience which will be very instrumental for our success in the conference.”

Freshman Michele Larrinaga gained some valuable experience scoring the first goal of the season for North Florida. Trailing 2-0, Larrinaga cut the lead in half and gave the momentum to the Ospreys.

The Panthers rattled off back-to-back shots on goal with 35 minutes remaining in the first half to put the pressure on the Ospreys, but UNF was up to the challenge. The first shot was deflected by senior goalie Rachael Howard to a GSU player. Georgia State’s forward attempted the shot, but Kristin Lazowick used her body to shield the goal and leave the score knotted at 0-0.

Georgia State was the first to score. At the 19-minute mark of the first half, Sarah Dashiell took a pass from Apryl Goodwin and shot the ball from the right side of the box just over the head of the UNF goalie to give the visitors a 1-0 edge.

Four minutes later, the Panthers struck again as Lindsay Mortellaro headed the ball off of a free by Bri Cagle to put Georgia State ahead 2-0.

In the 23rd minute of the match, UNF cut Georgia State’s lead in half as Larrinaga scored her first goal of the season. Freshman Sadie McLean fed Larrinaga the ball in the box and Larrinaga spun the defender around before zipping the ball past the Georgia State goalie into the top left corner of the goal to cut the deficit to 2-1.

The goal shifted momentum to the Ospreys. In the final minutes of the first half, UNF outplayed the Panthers; however, North Florida was unable to tie the score before halftime.

The score remained 2-1 at intermission, but the Panthers wasted little time in the second stanza regaining a two-goal advantage. Dashiell took a fast break from Sarah Bennett and snuck it by the UNF defense.

The Panthers increased their lead to 4-1 with 25 minutes remaining in the match. Georgia State used a 3-on-1 fast break to get by the UNF defense and score the goal.

The Ospreys pulled to within one thanks to two goals by Swift. Her first goal of the season came off of a corner kick. Sadie McLean took the corner for UNF and Vladana Petricevic received the ball and pushed it over to Swift who put the ball in the back of the net.

Just one minute later, Swift was leading the charge on a fast break when she was fouled inside the box, resulting in a penalty shot. Swift’s shot was true and her two goals pulled the Ospreys to within one of the Panthers at 4-3.

Despite several strong shots by UNF, the Ospreys were unable to score the tying goal and the match ended 4-3.

“We scored three goals on a very good team,” added Hamilton. “One thing to take away from this match is that mistakes hurt us and it’s hard to over come when you put yourself in the hole. This is just another step towards getting the girls ready for the conference tournament. We will take these mistakes and grow from them.”

North Florida will resume play in the Osprey Classic with a match slated for 2 p.m. UNF will take on Coastal Carolina. Prior to the Ospreys’ match, Georgia State will square off with Jacksonville in a match scheduled for Noon.