Women’s Soccer Ties #19 Clemson

By Brittany Ehrlich

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Syracuse’s women’s soccer team tied Clemson University 0-0 Sunday afternoon. The game went into double overtime on a blazing 90 degree September day.

“We battled for 110 minutes in the heat and that was big for us,” said goalkeeper Courtney Brosnan.

SU head coach Phil Wheddon said he was prepared for the heat, and wasn’t willing to risk his players health for it.

“We talked about when someone looks fatigued, wherever we have to make an immediate change because we don’t want the players to have potential problems with the heat,” Wheddon said. “So we moved them on and off the field as quickly as possible.”

With a little over 20 minutes left in the first half, the referees issued a water break for both teams due to the hot conditions.

Syracuse played more defensively throughout the double overtime to conserve energy.

“I thought we did a really good job of having players pick and choose when to go forward,” Wheddon said. “The speed we knew Clemson was going to play at…We knew we’d be making a ton of 70-yard runs back toward our own goal.”

Against a 16^th ranked Tigers team, the Orange relayed that it wasn’t necessarily happy with the tie, but proud of its efforts.

“Obviously we want to win games,” said Brosnan. “Everyone wants to win but I’m happy with the result.”

Brosnan had five saves against Clemson and has started every game so far her senior year. She also received a yellow card during the game as she attempted to clear an oncoming ball. As she attempted to clear the ball, Brosnan miskicked and took down a Clemson player.

Clemson had 16 shots on the Orange and some good opportunities, especially in the last five minutes of each half. Syracuse on the other hand only had nine shots and missed a big opportunity in the first half with a one-on-one play.

Wheddon explained that his focus on his defense throughout the game was second balls, emphasizing watching bounces and balls throughout the air. This was important for the Orange as the Tigers are known for its set pieces and balls over the top. Clemson had eight corner kicks compared to Syracuse’s one.

The end of the game was very physical as Syracuse racked up three more yellow cards from defender Alana O’Neill, midfielder Opal Curless, and forward Alex Lamontagne. Syracuse had 23 fouls throughout the game, compared to Clemson’s 16.

Due to one the hottest days in September since 1936, Syracuse’s bench was cleared of all but six players to keep the players hydrated and energized.

The Orange play next on September 30^th down in Chapel Hill, taking on the University of North Carolina at noon. UNC is currently ranked eight in the country with a record of 7-2.