Every game means more in the NCAA Tournament, no matter the sport. When the stakes are higher, the pressure and intensity rise with it. On a cold night at Orange County Great Park, No. 1-seed USC women’s soccer faced No. 8 Saint Louis in a fiery match that’ll go down as an instant classic.
At the end of a wild regulation time that saw Saint Louis answer twice to USC taking the lead, the score was level at 3-3. But just over seven minutes into overtime, senior forward Maile Hayes drew a penalty and blasted a shot into the upper left corner of the net to win the game for USC 4-3.
“I honestly thought about [the penalty] last night,” Hayes said. “I like to visualize things and last night, I picked a side to shoot and I told myself I’m going to stick with that. If the moment comes, it comes and if not, we move onto the next one.”
That moment did indeed arrive for Hayes, burying it high to leave little doubt it would hit the back of the net. The penalty was her second goal of the game, bringing her up to a team-leading tally of 10 this season, also adding an assist to give her five total points in this game.
For the USC team and its fans, penalties might have been at the forefront of their minds, but not with pleasant memories. The Trojans missed all their shots from the spot in a penalty shootout and lost to Rutgers in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals.
This time, the moment felt different. After Hayes was taken down and the penalty was awarded after a video check, she was vocal in wanting to take it and finish off the play she started, something the Trojans are keen on doing. She mentioned that the team has been practicing ever since that Rutgers matchup, waiting for their next opportunity to capitalize.
“It can be a bit nerve racking going up there for the first time in a really big moment, but it’s all about having confidence and mentality,” Hayes said. “I knew I was going to make that. Telling yourself that you’re going to make it and staying positive before it happens is the difference maker.”
After what transpired in the second half of play, it might’ve been hard for USC to stay positive. The Trojans were up 1-0 heading into the second half thanks to Hayes’ first goal, a strike with her right foot from outside the box that found the bottom left corner.
But just three minutes into the second half, Saint Louis scored off a mistake by USC’s defense. Senior midfielder Aaliyah Farmer has been one of the Trojans’ best players this season, but she missed her touch on a pass just outside the Trojan 18-yard box, allowing Saint Louis redshirt senior forward Hannah Larson to sweep up the ball, take a big touch to create space and rocket a shot past graduate goalkeeper Laurence Gladu to even the score at 1-1.
After USC senior forward Simone Jackson and Saint Louis graduate goalkeeper Emily Puricelli collided, Puricelli — the most experienced player in NCAA with now 109 career games — was forced off due to injury with less than 35 minutes left in regulation. That made way for freshman goalkeeper Nimu Karani to make her fifth-ever appearance.
The Trojans capitalized moments later in the 62nd minute on a chaotic play. Karani couldn’t corral a ball coming towards her in the box and Hayes regained possession. It went out to USC senior midfielder Helenia Sampaio, who passed it back to Hayes for a high-arching shot that went off the post. It bounced back into play and Jackson was there on the rebound to make it 2-2, scoring in her third consecutive game.
USC’s lead wouldn’t last for long. Just two minutes later, Saint Louis leveled the score again at 2-2 after a corner was deflected to the top of the box, senior forward Hannah Sawyer volleyed a shot wide, but right into the path of fifth-year defender Sophia Stram, who remained onside and tapped the ball home.
Both teams continued to up the physicality with a combined 22 fouls in the game and three yellow cards. The pendulum swung back and forth for the next 23 minutes until the Trojans finally broke through.
In the 87th minute, Sampaio had the ball with her back towards the Saint Louis goal, playing it to senior midfielder Maria Alagoa. Alagoa then played a chipped pass into the box for a streaking senior forward Kayla Colbert, who took a dribble, remained calm and poked a shot over Karani to take a 3-2 lead.
USC and its fans in Irvine celebrated like the game would be over, and why not with only three minutes remaining? However, the game is never over when Saint Louis is on the other side. Instead of needing two minutes to equalize, the Billikens only needed one.
In the 88th minute, Saint Louis earned a free kick. After the Billikens played the ball in and headed it towards the opposite side of the box, Stram was there to one-touch the volley with her left foot and curl it around to equalize at 3-3.
Stram’s second goal was almost a replica of her first. She was in the right spot at the right time, completely wide open for her first and second goals of the season. It was her second career brace in her 106th game.
It seemed like the air was taken out of Great Park on USC’s side after Stram’s second goal of the game until that final whistle blew two minutes later to signal overtime. USC head coach Jane Alukonis had a game plan that she wanted her team to stick with, and it ended up working with Hayes’ penalty goal in the 98th minute.
“We always try to keep them calm and confident and stick to what we would like to do,” Alukonis said. “It’s such a mental battle and we had to keep our heads in it, try to continue to create how we like to create and always believe. It’s tournament time and the victories won’t always be pretty, but you just have to go forward and make sure you get the win.”
USC will now face a familiar Big Ten foe in No. 4 Wisconsin in the Sweet 16, who also duked it out against No. 5 Virginia right before USC’s game and won in a penalty shootout after a scoreless 90 minutes plus overtime.
Wisconsin traveled to Dignity Health Park to face USC back on September 29, losing to the Trojans 3-0. This time, Alukonis knows what to expect from the Badgers in what should be a hard-fought matchup.
“They’re a great team,” Alukonis said. “They’re well organized, very disciplined, well coached and will work extremely hard. They went into overtime and so did we, but it’ll be about who turns around and takes care of their bodies.”
During the regular season, both teams usually had a minimum two days of rest in between games. Now, since it’s the NCAA Tournament, both teams will only have a day of rest before they face off Sunday at 4 p.m. at Great Park for a right to move on into the quarter finals.