Another overtime, another heartbreak on the golden goal.
No. 15 Penn (4-3, 1-0 Ivy) faced off in an afternoon matchup against No. 5 Florida (8-2). Sixty minutes were not enough to crown the victory. But in overtime, Florida captured the victory 13-12, marking Penn’s second loss this season in overtime.
Battle to the Buzzer
All four quarters ended with the score tied, with each team forcing equalizers and keeping themselves in fighting position. Down 3-1 early, Penn clawed themselves back to show Florida they weren’t going down without a fight.
With under two minutes on the clock in the fourth quarter, Penn was down 11-10. The defense stood tall and forced the Gators to commit a shot clock violation. The offense had to make magic happen. Senior midfielder Anna Brandt already had a hat trick today, so it was no shock that she pulled another trick out and scored to tie the game at 11-11.
Riding that momentum, sophomore attacker Catherine Berkery capitalized on Penn having the shot clock advantage and scored her third goal to take a 12-11 lead. But, with the remaining three seconds on the clock, Florida midfielder Kaitlyn Davies drew the foul. Game on the line, Davies showed that she could perform under the brightest of lights and scored to send it to overtime.
Three minutes on the clock and 90 seconds on the shot clock in overtime meant that Penn could use half the time to get a good shot off. Brandt charged in to take the final shot, but fell to the ground, and the refs called it a turnover.
Florida waited for their moment to strike, seconds ticking down as it tried to draw the Penn defense into making a mistake. But in a scuffle for the ball and with only five seconds on the clock, attacker Gianna Monaco scooped up the ball to seal the win for Florida.
“I’m really proud of the team. That’s a No. 5 or No. 6 team in the country, and we could’ve won today,” coach Karin Corbett said. “[I’m] really proud of the heart and fight they showed today. It was a rough game — physically rough — and I thought they really rose to the occasion showed a lot of heart and guts.”
In-Person Highlight Reels
While the Gators got the last laugh, the Quakers had punched them in the snout to open: Brandt launched a goal in from close range within a minute from face-off. She wasn’t the only high-scoring senior. Senior attack Keeley Block had a hat trick of her own. Down early 1-3, Block stopped Florida’s momentum in its tracks — and sent Florida’s midfielder Kaitlyn Davies onto her back and on the ground with a stutter step.
Block also filled the stat sheet beyond just goal scoring. She had two assists on the day, including one to senior midfielder Gracie Smith in the fourth quarter. Just like Brandt’s opening score of the day, Smith’s came in the opening minute of play.
“Our seniors are doing a fantastic job. Gracie Lillis on the defensive end, Gracie Smith is a big part of the middie. She plays a lot of time out there. Obviously Anna and Keeley and Natasha [Gorriaran] — every game they’re just so important,” Corbett said.
Beyond just their seniors, freshman goalkeeper Orly Sedransk had another big day with seven saves against Florida’s 20 shots on goal. Each save was more electric than the last.
“These Are Controllable Things”
Florida went up 3-1 midway through the first quarter in large part due to their possession time. They maintained possession after possession because of winning tight battles for ground balls. During the first quarter, Florida won five ground balls vs Penn’s one.
“We gave them three, four opportunities because we didn’t pick up the ground ball up on our own defense end. Those are things we’ve got to do better,” Corbett said. “I talked a lot about before about what we can control and those are things you can control.”
Penn ultimately gave up 22 ground balls to Florida, one of which was the one that led to Monaco’s game-winning goal.
Corbett also cited a few “muffed clears” and errant passes that led to turnovers. She emphasized how Penn's stats today are all correctable as they prepare for two games within five games: an Ivy game against Columbia on Mar. 29 and a marquee matchup against Maryland on Mar. 31.
“These are controllable things. There are more games,” Corbett said. “They should be proud of themselves, that this shows that we can play with anybody, and I hope they understand that and gain confidence from this game.”
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