Bulls Advance To MAC Semifinals After A 3-1 Penalty Kick Victory Over CMU

Sunday, November 1

1 pm

11-6-3 (7-3-1MAC)

Central Michigan

6-10-3 (5-5-1MAC)

OT 3

OT 4

CMU

Buffalo

Bulls Advance To MAC Semifinals After A 3-1 Penalty Kick Victory Over CMU

11/1/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer

Box Score

BUFFALO, NY – The University at Buffalo, The State University of New York women's soccer team (11-6-3, 7-3-1 MAC) advanced to their second straight MAC semifinal as they were able to defeat Central Michigan, 3-1, in penalty kicks in their quarterfinal matchup on Sunday afternoon at UB Stadium. Sophomore goalkeeper Laura Dougall made two huge saves in the shootout to help the Bulls advance to back-to-back MAC semifinals for the first time in program history.

The Basics

Score: Buffalo 2, Central Michigan 2 – Bulls advanced 3-1 on penalty kicks.
Buffalo Goal Scorers: Carissima Cutrona (3), Brianna Shingary (2)
Buffalo Assists: Celina Carrero (6), Moira Petrie (3)
Records: Buffalo (11-6-3, 7-3-1 MAC), Central Michigan (6-10-3, 5-5-1 MAC)
Location: UB Stadium – Buffalo, NY
Attendance: 418
The Short Story: The University at Buffalo, the State University of New York women's soccer team turned in a gritty performance in the quarterfinal round of the MAC tournament as they advanced on penalty kicks, downing Central Michigan 3-1. Brianna Shingary, Julia Benati and Carissima Cutrona each netted their penalty kick chances to help UB move onto the semifinals.

Starting Lineups

Buffalo: Laura Dougall, Kristin Markiewicz, Angel Hart, Julia Benati, Jackie Hall, Carissima Cutrona, Kassidy Kidd, Celina Carrero, Moira Petrie, Brianna Shingary, Andrea Niper
Central Michigan: Zoie Reed, Christen Chiesa, Kaelyn Korte, Adriana Ramon, McKay Matheson, Mary Carlson, Madison Pogarch, Taylor Potts, Samantha Maher, Eliza Van De Kerkhove, Lauren Sherry

How It Happened

The Bulls opened the scoring just two minutes into the match as Moira Petrie crossed a great ball into the box where Celina Carrero touched a pass to Carissima Cutrona who buried her third career goal.
The Chippewas came roaring back in the 20^th minute as Madison Pogarch ripped a great shot from distance that found its way under the cross bar and into the back of the net to tie the game at one.
In the 26^th minute, Kassidy Kidd had a great chance to score as she took a Cellina Careero feed and ripped a shot just over the cross bar.
The Chippewas had their last chance of the first half in the 33^rd minute as Eliza Van De Kerkhove saw her shot denied by Laura Dougall who came off her line to cut off the angle.
Just a minute into the second half, Central Michigan had a great chance but Alexis Pelafas had her shot on a wide open goal blocked away by team captain Jackie Hall.
In the 55^th minute the Bulls took the 2-1 lead as Brianna Shingary made a beautiful individual play. Shingary stole a Central Michigan pass at midfield and made a great spinning move and booted a perfect shot into the upper right corner of the net.
The Chippewas came right back in the 63^rd minute as Eliza Van De Kerkhove had a chance to score but Dougall made a great kick save to preserve the 2-1 edge.
In the 72^nd minute, Ashley Evans had a nice chance to score after Rebecca Bramble led her with a great pass but her shot attempt was denied by the CMU keeper.
In the 88^th minute, Kassidy Kidd nearly put the game away for the Bulls but her hard shot was saved by the keeper.
The Chippewas then transitioned down the field with the clock running down and scored the equalizer on a scrum in front of the UB goal. Alexis Pelafas buried the goal with just one second remaining on the clock.
Each side had their chances in the first overtime with Angel Hart having the best look off a corner kick. Her hard shot sailed just over the cross bar.
The two sides battled hard in the second overtime with neither side able to score. The Bulls held the 3-2 edge in shots in the final overtime period.
With the game still tied, the match went to penalty kicks. Central started it off and Laura Dougall made a pretty diving stop to give the Bulls the advantage. Freshman Brianna Shingary then stepped up and calmly buried the goal, giving UB the 1-0 lead.
The next CMU shooter was denied once again by Laura Dougall. Julia Benati then calmly stepped in and buried the goal, making it 2-0 in favor of the Bulls.
After a CMU goal, Carissima Cutrona scored what turned out to be the game-winner as the next Chippewa missed the net on her attempt.

Inside The Numbers

With the win, UB advances to the MAC semifinals to take on Western Michigan. This marks the first time in program history UB has advanced to back-to-back MAC semifinals.
The win gives the Bulls five straight wins at UB Stadium, their longest streak of the season.
With her goal, Carissima Cutrona has a career-high three goals and five assists this season. She also scored her first shootout goal of her career.
Brianna Shingary netted her second career goal in the win and then netted her first career shootout goal.
With her assist on Carissima Cutrona's goal, Celina Carrero now has 13 career assists, ranking 11th in program history.
For the game, the Bulls held the 19-12 edge in shots and the dominant 9-0 lead in corner kicks.
Carissima Cutrona led all players with five shots while Kassidy Kidd finished with four shots in the win.
Laura Dougall made four saves while clinching the game for UB with two huge shootout saves.

Player of the Match
Following the match, Brianna Shingary was awarded the "Player of the Match" award by the UB coaching staff after another strong match defensively. The freshman also netted her second career goal in the win.

Saint Joseph's – Jackie Hall
Drexel – Kristin Markiewicz
Canisius – Julia Benati
St. Bonaventure – Kassidy Kidd
Syracuse – Dana Lytle
Niagara – Rebecca Bramble
Binghamton – Kassidy Kidd / Celina Carrero
#7 West Virginia – Laura Dougall
Ohio – Brianna Shingary
Kent State – Carissima Cutrona
Eastern Michigan – Carissima Cutrona
Bowling Green – Moira Petrie
Western Michigan – Kassidy Kidd
Northern Illinois – Andrea Niper
Toledo – Kassidy Kidd
Central Michigan – Jackie Hall
Miami (OH) – Brianna Shingary
Ball State – Moira Petrie
Akron – Kristin Markiewicz
Central Michigan – Brianna Shingary

Up Next

The Bulls will travel to Western Michigan on Friday for a rematch of the MAC final from a season ago. #3 UB will take on #2 Western Michigan in the first semifinal matchup while #5 Miami will play #8 Akron.