Coach Seamus O’Connor gathered himself following Temple’s 2-1 defeat of Cornell in extra time Sunday, and assessed the victory.
“This is a big one,” O’Connor said.
Junior Kelly Farrell netted the goal with only two minutes remaining in extra time, giving the Owls the Big Red Shootout win, along with the longest winning streak in school history.
“I was so happy that I could be the one to make my team, my family and my school become 7-0,” said Farrell.
The Owls struck first in the game, scoring in the eighth minute when Farrell knocked in a loose ball after pressuring the Cornell goalkeeper into losing control of it. Cornell responded soon after with a goal of its own and that was it for the scoring until Farrell’s late-game heroics.
There were a number of other scoring chances for the Owls, but they just couldn’t find the back of the net. They ended the game with 13 shots, including five on goal.
Despite their struggles, O’Connor said he and his team felt confident in Temple’s ability to score the game-winner.
“We were completely in control,” O’Connor said. “We were all over them. It was only a matter of time before we scored.”
However, the score remained tied with the extra time dwindling. That’s when the ball, after being crossed in by junior Shannon Senour and deflected by junior Gabriella McKeown, found the foot of Farrell.
“Gabriella deflected it towards me and I volleyed it as hard as I could into that net,” Farrell said. “There was no way that goalie was saving my shot, not after how hard we fought in the game.”
With the win on Cornell’s home field, the Owls continued their success on the road this year. They’ve played six of their seven games away from home. O’Connor said he’s been taken aback at how well his team has played on its travels thus far.
“You don’t go to other people’s places and beat them,” O’Connor said.
Owen McCue can be reached at owen.mccue@temple.edu.
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