DU advances to NCAC Championship with 2-1 victory over OWU
Jessie Birdwhistell scored in the 82nd minute to lead Denison past OWU and into their third straight NCAC Tournament Championship. (story from the Denison University web site; photos by Ian Darrow)
Date: October 31, 2007 - Location: GRANVILLE
For the third consecutive season the Denison women's soccer team will play in the North Coast Athletic Conference tournament championship game following their 2-1 victory over Ohio Wesleyan on Wednesday night. The #2 seed Big Red will face top-seeded Wittenberg on Saturday (Nov. 3) in Springfield, Ohio at a time yet to be determined.
From the onset of the match Denison controlled the tempo and took command on the offensive end. They outshot Ohio Wesleyan 7-1 in the opening period and put the first goal on the board in the 29th minute when Anna Rusch (Washington, D.C./Sidwell Friends) touched a corner kick out to Kia Anderson (Princeton, N.J./Princeton) who played a cross in toward the goal. The pass hit off the cross bar and was 
finished off by Katie Eckenhoff (Glencoe, Ill./New Trier) in front of the OWU goal. The goal was Eckenhoff's third of the season.
DU would finish off the first half with a 1-0 lead and would continue their offensive pressure into the second half.Within a three minute span that began in the 70th minute, freshman Maggie Hoskin (Chicago, Ill./Homewood-Flossmor) got off three solid shots, two of which ended in saves by Ohio Wesleyan goalkeeper Laura VanHoey - 31. The second was a blast following a perfect pass by Sarah Ash that went off the post. Just eight minutes earlier Kim Oshita had an open look sail over the cross bar.
Just when it seemed like Denison may fail to add an insurance goal, Julie Dean (Liberty Twp., Ohio/Mount Notre Dame) crossed the ball from the left corner into the box directly on to the back heel of Jessie Birdwhistell (Lexington, Ky./Henry Clay) who redirected the ball into the back of the net.
Now sitting on a 2-0 lead with just under eight minutes to play, OWU brought more players forward and stayed alive with a goal by Meredith Gerrick - 19 with 3:07 remaining. With two minutes left the Bishops had a corner kick attempt and brought their goalie out to gain an advantage but the attempt by Meg Smith was cleared and Denison pushed the ball into their own half of the field to run out the clock.
Denison outshot OWU 19-7 and finished with four corner kicks to their two. Liz Gillette (Chardon, Ohio/NDCL) posted four saves in goal for the Big Red as did VanHoey for Ohio Wesleyan.
This is Denison's third straight trip to the NCAC title game and their fourth appearance in the last five seasons. Wittenberg defeated Kenyon 1-0 in their semifinal match from Springfield.
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Denison Edges Women's Soccer in NCAC Tournament....Senior forward Meredith Gerrick scored for the Bishops in an NCAC tournament semifinal game on Wednesday. (OWU Sports Information)
Denison 2, Ohio Wesleyan 0
Oct. 31, 2007
Senior forward Meredith Gerrick (19 - Durham, N.C./Indianapolis (Ind.) North Central) scored
to bring the Bishops within 2-1, but Denison withstood a last-minute threat and held on to defeat Ohio Wesleyan in a semifinal matchup of the North Coast Athletic Conference tournament on Wednesday in Granville. With the Bishops trailing, 2-0, Gerrick launched a 25-yard rocket past Denison keeper Liz Gillette and into the Big Red goal with 3:07 left in regulation time.
The Bishops threatened again, earning a corner kick with less than 2 minutes to play, but Ohio Wesleyan was not able to get off a shot at the tying goal. Denison had taken a 1-0 lead in the 30th minute. After a Big Red corner kick, Kia Anderson's crossing pass hit the crossbar and Katie Eckenhoff's follow found the Bishop net. The Big Red added to their lead in the 83rd minute when Julie Dean crossed the ball into the Ohio Wesleyan penalty area and Jessie Birdwhistell played it off her heel and into the goal. Denison outshot Ohio Wesleyan, 19-7. Freshman goalkeeper Laura VanHoey (31 - Rochester, Mich.) finished with 4 saves, while Gillette had 4 saves in the Denison goal.
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