HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Gardner-Webb looked to bounce back this afternoon against Marshall after an unsettling loss Friday night against Charlotte at home. Despite a quality effort from the Runnin' Bulldogs, they fell to the Thundering Herd in overtime by a score of 1-0.
Gardner-Webb goalkeeper Keely Brown showed well in goal today as she tallied 10 saves in the match. In the first period, the Thundering Herd put up nine shots, with five on goal as Brown and the Runnin' Bulldog defense kept the match scoreless. The Thundering Herd's offense remained persistent in the second period as they put up 10 shots, with four on goal.
In a "resilient effort", as Head Coach Mike Varga described the match, GWU's offense was only able to get off one shot in the first period, and three in the second. Three of the Runnin' Bulldogs four shots were on goal as they all came off of the foot of Samuelle Grove and Ty Snell.
After 90 minutes of play, the match remained scoreless. However, Molly Preston of the Thundering Herd would lead her team to victory as she received the cross from Rene Ross then tapped the ball in just one minute and forty-six seconds into overtime.
"I was proud of our efforts this afternoon," said Coach Varga as Gardner-Webb falls to 0-5 on the season. "This effort will end up winning matches for us," he continued.
Despite an unfavorable record, Coach Varga recognizes that "this has been an incredibly difficult schedule." He continued to note that "it doesn't get much easier" as the Runnin' Bulldogs open Big South play in a couple of weeks as they face off with the Flames at Liberty on Sept. 23rd.
Both Annie Ross and Ty Snell came off the bench for Gardner-Webb and gave the 'Dogs a spark as Ross recorded 48 minutes in the match, while Snell recorded 43.
Gardner-Webb notched two corner kicks this afternoon, while Marshall had eight. Both teams mirrored each other in the foul column as they each tallied 10.
After a competitive effort this afternoon, Coach Varga noted "defensively we were more organized, so there are some positives to take away from this."
The Runnin' Bulldogs are back in action this Friday, Sept. 8 at Eastern Kentucky (2-2-1). The match is at 4:00 PM.
