Ferris State beat the Huskies in their own backyard on homecoming weekend in a disappointing 1-0 finish. A sixty-eighth-minute penalty kick goal by Bri Rogers lead the Bulldogs to victory against Michigan Tech.
“It was a good battle and unfortunately losing to a penalty kick hurts,” said head coach Michelle Jacob. “We started to put numbers forward in the second half to get a goal, but were unable to get on the board.”
Both the teams made an aggressive start. In the fourth minute, Bulldog Carley Dubbert made the first shot on goal which was saved by Kirsen Hudak. In reply Husky freshman Leah Goldman generated a scoring chance which Alison Chersterfield was just able to deflect.
This attack on the Ferris state goal post was followed by shots taken by Emily Zeitunian in the fifth minute of the game and Goldman again in the sixteenth minute. Brooke Schauer, Taylor Archibald and Kassity Swanson took shots in the first half, but with no success against the Ferris defense. Hudak and the Husky defense kept it competitive, saving six shots out of six taken by Ferris State, concluding the first half with a 0-0 score.
The second half started much the same. Husky Andrea Zubke made another shot, matched by another 10 from the Bulldogs. Both defenses stayed strong, including a very impressive series of saves by Hudak in the seventy-second minute.
The game’s only scoring happened in the sixty-eighth minute. A handball penalty on the Huskies resulted in Bulldog Bri Rogers getting a penalty kick, which shot past Hudak and brought the score to 1-0.
After the goal, the Bulldogs focused on defense and the Huskies weren’t able to get any more shots on goal, meaning that 1-0 became the final score.
“Credit to Ferris State for managing the game well in the last 10 minutes and we struggled against their defense to get it forward for one last opportunity,” said Jacobs. “Overall, I thought we played pretty well, but we need to continue to take care of the ball and get numbers forward when we can.”
Hudak played all 90 minutes in front of the net while making a career-high 15 saves, while Goldman led the team on offense with three shots.
Ferris outshot the Huskies 23 to 10 overall and 16 to four shots on goal.
The Huskies will play a non-conference match against Northern Michigan on Friday afternoon at the Sherman Field.
