Soccer team falls flat again

Nicholas Valenzuela Arizona Daily Wildcat UA forward Nikki Jones (4) attempts to get through the Washington State defenders during yesterday's game which ended in a 0-0 tie. The soccer team lost Friday to Washington 3-2 with Jones scoring both goals for the team.

"We played hard for over 90 minutes in both games," women's soccer head coach Lisa Fraser said. "It was good soccer and I am disappointed with the results. But you've got to leave it out on the field. The team did all you could ask for."

The Wildcats (3-8-2 overall, 0-4-1 Pacific 10 Conference) fell to the Huskies (8-6-1, 4-1-0) on Friday night, 3-2, in sudden death overtime and remained in a scoreless tie with the Cougars (5-8-3, 3-2-1), after two 15-minute overtime periods Sunday afternoon.

"It's frustrating," assistant coach Jen Netherwood said. "You play good soccer and then you don't get the results you want."

Senior forward Nikki Jones dominated the scoreboard for the Wildcats Friday night, scoring the first goal of the game with a header near the end of the first half. Freshman forward Kim McGehee and sophomore midfielder Kerri Kennedy-Weber both assisted Jones' goal.

Washington's Gina Brewer matched the score within five minutes of the Wildcats' goal. And when the Huskies took the lead early in the second half with a goal by Natalie Campbell, Jones edged the score to a tie again on an assist by sophomore forward Elena Galvan.

Washington's leading scorer Tami Bennett broke the tie at almost the six minute mark in sudden death overtime.

The Wildcats' leading scorer on the season, Jones (4 goals, 5 assists), took the loss hard.

"I just didn't get it done," she said. "We need to finish. We needed to finish when we had the opportunity and we didn't. I don't know, when it just came down to it, we didn't score."

Almost more frustrating than Friday's game was the tie with the Cougars on Sunday, Fraser's coaching alma master.

"We should have won," UA freshman forward Kristi Loro–#241;a said. "We were unlucky. We worked really hard. It's frustrating, nothing was falling for us."

The greatest challenge for the Wildcats this season has been finishing, and the struggle continued in yesterday's game when they had to break past the barrier created by the Cougars' 5-foot-11-inch freshman goalkeeper Lindsey Jorgensen.

Although the Wildcats dominated the game offensively, and managed to keep a fair watch over the Cougars' leading scorer, sophomore Deka DeWitt (3 goals, 4 assists), they couldn't break past Jorgensen's shutout record, now set at five games.

"We had the opportunities," Jones said. "We had our chances. We hit the crossbar (or) the keeper stopped it. I just don't know what to say. Some of it has to do with luck not being on our side. Maybe we don't want it bad enough, I just don't know."

After the regulation game ended, and the Wildcats came on the field for sudden death, they sure tried to prove they wanted it.

They pushed numbers forward and came out playing intense offense, dominating the opening five minutes of overtime.

"We just thought we got to get it done," Fraser said. "It was sudden death and we had to come back into the game hard because if they did first, it was over."

But after 30 minutes of wind-blown soccer, both teams remained at a scoreless tie.

"We're not very happy," said the Cougars' DeWitt. "We're not playing together as a team. We had our chances and didn't put them in."

Though they did put the heat on Arizona's sophomore goalkeeper Inger Airheart with continuos shots fired at her during overtime, including three indirect penalty kicks on the Wildcats' defensive end.

"It's more stressful," said Airheart of overtime. "Because if one goal goes in, it's the end of the game. Plus, we're so exhausted and it's been tiring with two overtime games this weekend."

The Wildcats will have a few days of rest, with no practice tomorrow and no games until Friday when they travel to Oregon to take on the Ducks and Beavers, Friday and Sunday, respectively.

"I think we can come back with two wins," Airheart said. "We're doing a lot better in the Pac-10 and if we play the way we can, I know we can do it."

Kate Longworth can be reached via e-mail at Kate.Longworth@wildcat.arizona.edu.