Courtesy Lynn Penland
COLUMBUS, GA.— The Spartans defeated Columbus State University during penalty kicks in an intense Elite 8 game in the NCAA Tournament.
Ashley Flateland scored the winning PK to advance the Spartans to the Final Four for the second year in a row.
“It was all about heat, and we didn’t want to end our season,” said Courtney Evans. “It was all up hill from our second goal.”
Reesey Bernard scored the first goal for the Spartans in the first half within the first seven minutes. Columbus State bounced back later in the half and scored a goal off a direct kick drawn from a foul in the corner.
Columbus State jumped ahead in the second half when a ball dribbled to the goal line on a questionable call from the side referee.
All game, Tampa played intense defense, killing the opportunities for CSU to score.
With 10 minutes remaining in the second half, Shelby Kuni tapped a ball in the goal, tying the score at two.
The game went into first overtime and then double overtime. CSU was given a corner kicked with 20 seconds left of double overtime. Shannon Aitken had a full extension save to keep the Spartans alive.
In the penalty round, CSU made their first goal and Kuni hit the crossbar for Tampa’s first. Aitken stepped it up in the next rounds, blocking two giving Tampa the 2-1 advantage.
“I had to make up for how I played during the game,” said Aitken.
CSU then hit the cross bar on the fourth PK. Flateland’s PK hit in the top left corner of the goal, sending the team screaming after her on the field.
“It was a tough game,” said Coach Gerry Lucey. “We went in there and battled. The first hour we were trying to find our rhythm and we started playing better in the last 25-30 minutes. It came down to PKs and Shannon is big on those.”
The Spartans advance to the Final Four in Orange Beach, Ala. the week after Thanksgiving.
