Oklahoma State University Athletics
Oklahoma State University
Notre Dame
Cowgirls' Season Ends With Loss To Notre Dame
November 26, 2010 | Cowgirl Soccer
Nov. 26, 2010
STILLWATER, Okla. – Oklahoma State's record-setting season came to an end in the Elite Eight Friday night as the No. 6 Cowgirls dropped a 2-0 contest to No. 7 Notre Dame in front of a record crowd at the Cowgirl Soccer Complex.
Oklahoma State, a No. 3 national seed, ended its season with a 20-4-2 mark, while No. 4 national seed Notre Dame (19-2-2) got a pair of second-half goals from Elizabeth Tucker to propel the Fighting Irish into the NCAA Women's College Cup for the 12th time in school history.
“The better team won tonight,” said OSU head coach Colin Carmichael. “Notre Dame is a great team with great individual players, very well coached. You could tell they've been there, done that. They walked on the field with a lot of confidence in themselves and maybe we were a little bit timid early.
“Our kids came back in the second half and did a better job, fought very, very hard as we did all year. We just weren't able to break down a really good team.”
A crowd of 2,660 fans saw OSU lose for the first time in 13 games on its home field this season. The overflow crowd passed the 2003 Bedlam crowd of 2,307 as the largest in program history.
“It's amazing the support we've gotten at these games,” OSU junior defender Melinda Mercado said. “Usually we get a pretty good fan base, but just the support that Stillwater has given us these last few games has really made a difference.”
It wouldn't be enough on Friday, however, as OSU's bid for its first-ever trip to the Women's College Cup came up just short.
Notre Dame controlled the offensive attack in the opening half, outshooting the Cowgirls by a 10-1 margin. But a pair of saves by OSU goalie AD Franch kept the Irish off the scoreboard before intermission.
“I was happy with the way we defended Notre Dame,” Carmichael said. “In the first half, they had quite a lot of the ball without really having too many chances at goal. My regret at halftime was I felt we didn't cause them enough trouble from an attacking standpoint. In the second half, we did a little better. We created some chances. But we knew it was going to be very difficult. Their front three is as good as anybody in the country, and we knew it was going to be hard to contain them.”
The Irish came out strong again in the second half, getting a pair of close-range headers in the 48th minute that the OSU defense was able to stop.
After a slow first half, OSU got a solid scoring opportunity in the 51st minute, but a shot by Krista Lopez was blocked by a Notre Dame defender.
The Irish finally broke the scoreless tie in the 63rd minute. Lauran Fowlkes sent a cross from the near side into the box where Tucker was there to send it to the back of the net to give UND a 1-0 advantage.
OSU's offense would create several scoring opportunities down the stretch, one of the best of which came in the 73rd minute on a shot by Katie Richardson that was blocked by a UND defender.
However, the Cowgirls could not find the back of the net, and Tucker put the game away on a goal with just 20 seconds remaining in the match.
“For us to win tonight, we would have had to have a special performance,” Carmichael said. “I thought we played well, but probably just not quite well enough to cause them enough problems.”
Oklahoma State-Notre Dame Post-Game Quotes
OSU head coach Colin Carmichael
On the senior class and the season
“We told our seniors they've raised the bar once again. That's three Big 12 championships in a row, an Elite Eight appearance. We want to do it again. It was a fun ride, and I know these guys are anxious to do it again next year. We'll learn from this. Certainly Notre Dame is the type of program we aspire to become. Every year they seem to be competing for a final four berth, and that's what we'd like to do. We'll learn from this game, and next year these guys will be itching to get back at it.”
On his team
“We were picked fourth in the Big 12, and we won that and were really close to winning the regular season as well. And I don't think many people coming into the season would have picked us as a top-eight team. That's a credit to these kids. Overachieved is not the right word, but they certainly exceeded a lot of expectations. I couldn't be prouder of them that's for sure.”
OSU junior forward Krista Lopez
On the season
“Back when we were making our goals, it was, 'Oh let's get to the Sweet 16,' and we actually made it to the Elite Eight. We did better than we expected. We reached our goals, and we went above and beyond. I'm proud of my team. There's no more I could have asked for.”
On the disappointment of the season ending
“We really wanted to win the title, but we really don't have any regrets because we gave our all and we did go above and beyond our goals.”
Notre Dame head coach Randy Waldrum
Opening Statement…
"We are extremely excited to be going back to the College Cup. I want to thank Oklahoma State. They were great hosts, and it is a mixed feeling for me. I wanted to win and advance, but I have a lot of connections in Oklahoma from my coaching at the University of Tulsa. But we are very excited to be going."
On the history of Notre Dame playing in big games...
"The history of the program breeds players that are used to winning big games, either at home or on the road. Going into North Carolina, we felt we were better and coming in here today we felt we were better. That is no disrespect to the teams that we played because I think they are very good teams. Our kids just had that experience that has been passed on from older players, and the expectation level is up there. Our season isn't a successful season unless we get to the final four."
On Oklahoma State's program...
"They have done a great job. I am really proud of Karen Hancock and what she has done, and then passing it off to Colin Carmichael and the work he has done has been tremendous. They are right up there with some of the best teams we have played this season, and they have put together some good seasons the last few years. I think Colin is well on his way to building something special here. His kids played really hard tonight and it was a good battle."
Notre Dame freshman midfielder Elizabeth Tucker
On her two goals...
"Well Lauren Fowlkes got the ball and kind of cut it back and forth and managed to get a cross off, and I hit it with whatever part of my body I could and it went in. The second goal, the emphasis wasn't to score, but when Melissa Henderson got down there past their defense, she put the ball right on the money and all I had to do was tap it in."
Notre Dame junior forward Melissa Henderson
On trying to get touches on the ball...
"The first half I had to go get the ball a little more, and in the second half I wanted to get the ball on my feet because I can do more damage when I am taking someone one-on-one."
Notre Dame senior forward Lauren Fowlkes
On Oklahoma State's defense...
"They played really well together as a unit, and they are do really good at covering each other. They are really solid playing together. They kept us to a low number of shots and good chances."
