In Friday's MAC opener game against Buffalo, junior Sara Lund had five shots (Michael Griggs / The Miami Student)
It came in the fifth minute of play like a bolt of heat lightning on a warm summer day. The Kent State University Golden Flashes (6-3, 2-0 MAC) put a shot past Miami University's (4-4-1, 0-1-1 MAC) Krista Pace to provide the only goal of Sunday's contest and to sink the Red and White soccer squad 1-0.
"We started off slow and we gave up a soft goal early in the game and that was not a situation we wanted to put ourselves in," Head Coach Bobby Kramig said. "It's a very small field up there, and it's not a very easy place to maneuver. Neither team had a lot of opportunities to score. It's just a difficult place really to get anything positive going on in the game."
Midway through the opening half the 'Hawks hovered around the Flashes' box but couldn't make good on two corner kicks or finish the four shots they fired. Freshman Jess Kodiak was closest to the bull's-eye when she challenged the keeper in the 70th minute. The RedHawks' offensive chemistry and timing was debunked in part because of fast field conditions described by the 'Hawks' goalkeeper.
"The size of the field was something that you don't find anywhere else in the conference or outside of the conference," Pace said. "It was really hard to adjust to playing on a field where the ball is going to go right away and if you make one bad pass it's shoved back down your throat. They had a girl that could kick really far so as soon as we made a long pass it would be shoved right back down the field."
With the small field, the offensive output was dim. The game was a defensive dispute for both teams after the quick goal as the teams only combined for three shots on goal.
The Red and White will try their best at the amnesia approach after the conference loss.
"We need to forget about this game and continue working on what we are good at," Pace said. "We are doing good at possession and working the ball down the field and shooting, but we can score a couple more goals."
The RedHawks will take to the pitch again when they host the University of Toledo Rockets at 4 p.m. Friday. The Red and White will be looking to even up in the MAC by grounding the Rockets before facing the Bowling Green State University Falcons Sunday.
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