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BULLDOGS STUNNED BY ST. CLOUD STATE IN HOME OPENER

Sunday, September 9, 2012

Junior forward Dani Potter put two shots on goal in Sunday's home opening loss against St. Cloud State.

Credit: Amanda Cane

A soccer match cannot be won in a single minute, but one can certainly be lost in a matter of seconds. The University of Minnesota Duluth learned that the hard way, falling 2-1 to St. Cloud State University in Sunday's home opener before a crowd of 443 at Malosky stadium.

A 1-0 Bulldog lead in the second half quickly evaporated on back-to-back St. Cloud State goals, both of which were sprung by defensive breakdowns. The Huskies struck twice within a minute, effectively erasing more than a half of solid play by UMD.

"It's dissapointing because I thought we were in control of the match in a variety of ways," Bulldog head coach Greg Cane said. "That team did a good job to get themselves back in the match in the second half. In the second half you've got to come out and lock it down, and I don't think we had that mentality."

Senior defender Kristi Mehrman put UMD ahead in the first half, connecting on a diving header to slip the ball past Husky goalkeeper Kenzie Hanzlik. Sophomore midfielder Hannah Keil picked up the assist on Mehrman's goal. The left-footed midfielder set Mehrman up by lofting a free kick from the 30 yards out into the goal box, finding the senior captain on the back door. Mehrman, who doubled her career goal total with her first tally of the season, was more concerned with the end result on the scoreboard.

"It was exciting to score a goal," Mehrman said. "It's always great to get a nice crowd like this, especially for the home opener. I wish [the final score] would have turned the other way."

The Bulldogs are back in action next weekend, when they head south to take the pitch against Winona State University and Upper Iowa University.

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