Titans Move To WIAC Tournament Final With Overtime Win
Mackenzie Bennett had a pair of goals, including a match-ending score in overtime, as top-seeded UW-Oshkosh earned a 3-2 victory over fifth-seeded UW-Eau Claire in a semifinal round contest of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Women's Soccer Tournament (presented by Culver's) held Thursday (Nov. 4) at J. J. Keller Field at Titan Stadium.
Bennett tallied her decisive goal on a 3-yard header following a corner kick launched by Rylie Kaufmann at the 4:34 mark (94:34) of the scheduled 10-minute extra session.
Bennett previously secured an outright WIAC regular season title for UW-Oshkosh in its last match by converting a 4-yard header off a corner kick sailed by Kaufmann at the 5:18 (95:18) segment of the Titans' 1-0 overtime win against visiting UW-River Falls on Oct. 31.
UW-Oshkosh (15-2-1) will now host second-seeded UW-La Crosse (14-3-2) in the championship game of the six-team WIAC Tournament at 6 p.m. on Saturday (Nov. 6) at J. J. Keller Field at Titan Stadium.
UW-La Crosse qualified for its match with UW-Oshkosh by defeating third-seeded and visiting UW-Stevens Point (9-11), 3-0, in Thursday's other tournament semifinal.
UW-Oshkosh, which captured WIAC Tournament titles in 2011 and 2014, is playing in the league postseason final for the eighth time (2004, 2005, 2006, 2011, 2013, 2014 and 2015).
UW-La Crosse is making its fifth consecutive appearance in the WIAC Tournament final and seventh overall (1996, 1999, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019) after the 2020 event was canceled due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. The Eagles won the league tournament in 1996, 2017 and 2018.
UW-Oshkosh and UW-La Crosse are playing in the WIAC Tournament championship match for the first time. The Titans own a 15-25-3 WIAC postseason record while the Eagles are 17-23-3. UW-La Crosse lost a 4-1 road result to UW-Whitewater in the final of the 2019 tournament.
UW-Oshkosh enters Saturday's contest with an eight-match winning streak, including a 2-1 home victory over UW-La Crosse on Oct. 22. The Titans have won their last 14 matches played at J. J. Keller Field at Titan Stadium.
UW-La Crosse has posted an 8-1-1 record during its last 10 matches played.
Saturday's match will be the 35th between the teams, with UW-La Crosse owning a 20-11-3 advantage in a series that dates back to 1993.
The winner of this year's WIAC Tournament will earn the league's automatic berth into the 64-team NCAA Division III Championship that begins Nov. 13. Selections to the Division III postseason event will be announced on Monday (Nov. 8) on NCAA.com.
The University of North Carolina Greensboro will host the semifinal and national championship rounds at UNCG Soccer Stadium in Greensboro, N.C., Dec. 3-4.
Thursday's match between UW-Oshkosh and UW-Eau Claire was scoreless until Bennett scored on a 21-yard free kick following a Blugold foul during the 47th minute (46:11) of the contest. With the addition of her game-winning goal Bennett now has five goals on the season.
UW-Oshkosh extended its lead to 2-0 over the Blugolds in the 51st minute (50:45) as Mallory Knight scored on a 6-yard kick off a pass from Mackenzie Stein. The goal was Knight's seventh of the season.
UW-Eau Claire, which lost a 2-1 home decision to UW-Oshkosh on Oct. 2, charged back with consecutive goals to send the match to overtime. The Blugolds cut their deficit to 2-1 on Emma Stange's 3-yard kick in the 82nd minute (81:17) and evened the score on Ava Quick's 38-yard kick in the 82nd (81:17). Sophie Hubbard was credited with the assist on the goal scored by Stange.
UW-Eau Claire posted advantages in shots, 19-15, and corner kicks, 6-2, against UW-Oshkosh.
Stange, Maggie Conway and Megan Hansen each had three shots to lead the Blugolds while Piper Green owned five shots and Knight four for the Titans. Green and Knight both had three shots on goal.
UW-Oshkosh goalkeeper Erin Toomey saved five shots, including four in the first half. Toomey improved her season record to 13-2 with the win.
Anna Sveiven recorded six of her seven goalkeeping saves for UW-Eau Claire in the first period.
2021 WIAC Women's Soccer Tournament Program - Semifinal
Photo by Patrick Flood, UW-Oshkosh University Marketing & Communications