OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. -- Junior Casey O'Brien scored in the 19th minute and the second-seeded Golden Eagles (14-3-3) used three saves from sophomore goalkeeper Kristen Morency in a tie-breaking shootout to advance to the NAIA National Championships, 3-1 on penalty kicks, after tying top-seeded and No. 18 Oklahoma City (15-4-1), 1-1, in the Sooner Athletic Conference tournament final tonight at Stars Field.
The victory in penalty kicks marks the first SAC tournament title in program history, landing JBU its second-ever automatic berth to the national tournament. In 2005, John Brown used a 1-0 win over Oklahoma City at Alumni Field on Nov. 7 before defeating Oklahoma Baptist two days later, 3-1, to capture the Region VI championship and an automatic national tournament berth. This will be the third time in program history John Brown will play on the national stage as JBU qualified for the 2010 tournament with an at-large berth.
"Wow, what a cool moment for these girls and the program," admitted head coach Kathleen Paulsen after her record-breaking regular season at the helm. "I am just excited for these girls and the victory they have found together. The character of this team continues to shine through in the middle of adversity; this is all them. They created their core values, they set the standard and they are the ones living up to them. I could not be more proud."
Paulsen set the program record with 13 regular-season victories in her first season as head coach.
Before the match had even begun, the Golden Eagles were facing numerous records that pointed to a difficult task. John Brown had not captured a victory at Stars Field in over six seasons since a 1-0 win on Nov. 20, 2006. Since that time, OCU had rattled off eight-consecutive victories over the Golden Eagles in which John Brown was out-scored, 15-3. The Stars had also collected four-consecutive shutouts, three of which came in 1-0 victories.
All of that history evaporated quickly when O'Brien scored in the 19th minute, landing the visitors a stunning 1-0 lead. A defensive clear from senior Laura Bradshaw was settled by Sara Lachance at midfield and, after winning a one-on-one battle, the freshman sent a perfect pass through the middle to an oncoming O'Brien, flanked by defenders on each side. As the defense closed in, O'Brien launched a left-footed kick from 25 yards out. The high-arcing shot sailed over OCU netminder Alissa Reed's head, caught a piece of the left post, and fell in.
Fending off waves of Stars attacks finally resulted in an Oklahoma City opportunity in the 44th minute. As halftime approached, OCU's Kailea Atkins sent a long through ball into the Golden Eagle box. The pass took a tall bounce that alluded Morency as Makayla Braun finished the attack behind Morency and the defense.
Despite allowing the last-minute tally, John Brown found itself tied at the half after the Stars held an 8-3 shot advantage, including a 4-1 shots on goal margin. O'Brien's strike was JBU's lone shot towards Reed.
Reed, as usual, gave way to teammate Ashley Bechtold in net for the second half as the Stars came out holding possession to begin the period. A flurry of activity in the Golden Eagle defensive end necessitated a pair of Morency blocks that bookended one of three OCU corner kicks in the half. John Brown began to regain control in the 62nd minute when Lachance challenged Bechtold with a shot which the netminder corralled. Lachance also had another scoring chance in the 82nd minute as freshman Braydi Frederick and sophomore Julie Whitlow each fired shots on goal in the 74th and 90th minutes, respectively.
Neither team would score the tie-breaker as the Stars held a narrow 7-5 shots in the second half.
The match was nearly finished in the early portion of the first overtime when Lachance drew a foul on the right flank just outside the Stars' box. The ensuing Whitlow cross in the box glanced off the crossbar as seven Golden Eagles converged towards Bechtold. Just 22 seconds later, Oklahoma City all-time leading goalscorer, senior Megan McMahon, lofted a shot over the oncoming Morency. The attempt would eventually rebound off the right post, preserving the 1-1 deadlock. McMahon would attempt three more shots before the final horn while JBU managed just a pair of shots, one of which was blocked.
Unlike Tuesday's penalty kick session against Wayland Baptist (Texas), Morency began the shootout with back-to-back saves, including an opening rejection against McMahon, the 2013 SAC Player of the Year. Morency read the shot correctly and shuffled her way to the left to block McMahon's opportunity. O'Brien jump-started John Brown's collection of chances with a strike to the left side, fooling Bechtold, as the Golden Eagles led 1-0 after the first round.
In the second round, Morency was again up to the task, making her most impressive save against Allison Worsham as the sophomore leapt to the top right corner and punched the would-be goal over the crossbar. It would continue to be a 1-0 JBU lead after Bradshaw's miss in the back-end of the second round.
Although OCU's Allie Glazner was finally able to solve Morency with a well-placed strike to the upper left corner, Frederick responded with a kick to the bottom right corner that barely eluded the grasp of Bechtold, returning the lead to John Brown, 2-1.
In the final round, Morency slid to her left and kicked away Ashleigh Story's chance, setting up Whitlow for the potential championship-winning conversion.
Whitlow came through again, sending an shot to the left of Bechtold, just under her reach, securing the Golden Eagles' trip to the national tournament.
The Stars out-shot JBU, 20-11, and finished the night with a narrow 6-5 advantage in shots on goal. The Golden Eagles received a trio of shots from Lachance and a pair from both Frederick and Whitlow. O'Brien, Harris and Susmilch accounted for the final three. Oklahoma City boasted five corner kick chances in comparison to JBU's three while the fouls were 13-12 in favor of the Stars.
Morency (14-3-3) had to make five saves to secured the tie. Bechtold (4-0-1) was tagged with the tie for Oklahoma City. She made four saves and didn't allow a goal while Reed started the match and allowed O'Brien's tally without making a save in the first half.
The Golden Eagles will now have to wait to learn its first-round opponent and location. The Round of 32 is played at various host sites around the country and will all occur on Nov. 23 before the final 16 descend on the Orange Beach Sportsplex in Orange Beach, Ala., the following week.
The NAIA will hold a live show on Monday (Nov. 18) at 2:00 p.m. to reveal the matchups and locations. Information regarding the broadcast can be found soon on JBUathletics.com.
