Sept. 25, 2005
COLUMBIA, Mo. - After trailing 1-0 after the first 45 minutes, the Missouri Tigers scored twice in the second half to put away Big 12 Conference foe Baylor 2-1 Sunday afternoon at Walton Stadium.
The offense did not click early for Missouri (6-3-1, 1-1), as the Tigers were whistled for five offside calls in the first half and seven total in the game. However, the Tigers came back and dominated Baylor (2-7-1, 0-2) in the final 45 minutes to come away with their first conference win of the season.
Experience was the key for the Tigers, as three of Missouri's seniors connected for the game-winning goal in the 61st minute. Erica Pusch brought the ball up the right sideline and found Jennifer Nobis just outside the box. Nobis dribbled around a Bear defender and found Amber Swinehart five yards in front of the goal. Swinehart's shot eluded Baylor goalie Ashley Holder and gave Missouri its first lead of the game, 2-1. The goal was the team-leading sixth of the season for Swinehart.
"The seniors really stepped up today," said Missouri head coach Bryan Blitz. "We made some tactical changes in the second half. We knew Erica could get up field so we moved a few things around. We also knew (Baylor) didn't sub a lot in their game on Friday so we wanted to make them tired at the end of the first half."
After a scoring chance by Nobis fizzled out in the fifth minute when the Baylor keeper snatched her dribble in the box, the Bears managed to control the tempo for the rest of the half. In the 22nd minute, Baylor's Jennifer Martin found teammate Brittani Zonker just outside the box. Zonker's blast hit the left post then trickled past Missouri goalkeeper Laura Buehrig and into the net for a 1-0 Baylor advantage.
The Tigers had a good chance to tie the score in the 41st minute when freshman Carolina Pohl found sophomore Anne Baxter streaking to the box but Holder came off her line and grabbed the ball before Baxter could take a shot. The teams entered the locker rooms with Baylor in control 1-0 despite the Tigers' 11-9 shot advantage.
Missouri came out focused and in control in the second half. In the third minute, Nobis crossed a perfect pass across the goal mouth but no Tigers could get their foot on the ball. Hoping to catch the Baylor keeper off guard, junior Elyse Nikonchuk fired a deep shot from 30 yards out 23 seconds later. The shot was right on target but Holder managed to punch it over the crossbar.
A throw in from Nobis in the 58th minute found Swinehart, who ran toward the goal. Before Swinehart could take a shot, however, a Baylor defender brought her down in the box for a Tiger penalty kick. Nobis stepped up and placed her shot past Holder and into the lower right netting to tie the score 1-1.
Three minutes later, Pusch and Nobis set up Swinehart for the Tigers second goal and eventual game winner.
Buehrig made seven saves in goal for the Tigers, including five in the second half. This was the second game in a row Buehrig saved seven shots.
"We weren't ready to go to start the game," said freshman Ashley Hamblin. "But we knew we could come back because we really wanted this win. We were confident."
Missouri next travels to Ames, Iowa for a contest against Iowa State on Friday, Sept. 30 at 7:00 p.m. before heading to Lincoln, Neb. for a Sunday afternoon matchup against Nebraska on Oct. 2. The Tigers then return home the following weekend for games against Oklahoma and Oklahoma State.