• Boxscore & Play-by-Play

BILLINGS, Mont. – Megan Lindsay scored twice, including a golden goal in the fifth minute of overtime Saturday that lifted the first-place Seattle Pacific women to a 2-1 victory over second-place Montana State Billings in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference soccer game at Yellowjacket Field.

Lindsay (Spokane, Wash./Gonzaga Prep) ended the contest at 94:33 on a looping 28-yard shot into the upper left corner. The sophomore forward received a pass from Kendall Thoreson (Seattle, Wash./King's HS) on the right flank before turning on a defender and launching the first game-winning goal of her career.

The assist was the team-leading seventh for Thoreson, a sophomore who transferred to SPU from Northwestern. Four of her assists set up game-winning goals.

Defending conference champion SPU (10-1-2) extended its lead in the GNAC standings to three points. The 14th-ranked Falcons have a 7-1-1 league record and 22 points. Western Washington won to move into second place with a 6-2-1 mark and 19 points.

MSU Billings (9-3-1) dropped to third place, four points behind SPU with a 6-3-0 conference record.

Lindsay opened the scoring at 26:58 in a drastically different manner than her golden goal. Instead of 28 yards out, she was standing near the right post to tap in a loose ball during a goalmouth scramble that ensued after a Janie Wurth (La Mirada, Calif.) free kick.

Lindsay has five goals for the season, tying two other Falcons for the team lead. Junior Brandi Hamre and freshman Kellie Zakrzewski also have five goals to their credit.

“Megan Lindsay continues to go at back lines and go at keepers. She has a strong drive to finish,” SPU coach Chuck Sekyra described. “Good things happen when you go about things that way. It's awesome to see her continue to take things upon herself to do something for our team, which she did today.”

The Yellowjackets quickly responded to the opening goal, putting a ball in the back of SPU's net two minutes later. Jennifer Larsen netted her fifth goal on a far post header to the left side of the goal at 29:03 off a Whitney Siler corner kick.

The teams then battled through 65-1/2 scoreless minutes before Lindsay halted the contest during the first extra session. That was the fourth overtime game this season for the Falcons, who have a 2-0-2 record in those outings.

Both teams attempted nine shots in the evenly played clash. The difference came in overtime when each team tried one shot. Samantha Boehm's attempt for the Yellowjackets was blocked at 92:08. Just over two minutes later, Lindsay's shot found the goal.

SPU senior goalkeeper Maddie Dickinson (Vancouver, Wash./Skyview HS) stopped four shots in the winning effort. Her MSUB counterpart, Sabrina Grandke-Bawab, also had four saves.

The visit to Montana State was difficult for SPU, which beat Northwest Nazarene 3-0 Thursday night in Seattle before a quick trip to Billings for the Saturday morning game.

“Our kids showed a lot of toughness today. They battled after a long road trip and after being tired after Thursday's game,” Sekyra said. “A lot of kids stepped up and really fought, and I'm very proud of that. They showed their true character today. Some kids carried this team today and it was really fun to watch.”

The Falcons play their next two games on the road, beginning Thursday, Oct. 21 at Simon Fraser. Kick-off is 7 p.m. at Terry Fox Field. SPU plays at Western Washington on Oct. 23 before returning home to host Western Oregon on Oct. 28 at 7 p.m.


NCAA WOMEN'S SOCCER
Saturday, Oct. 16, 2010
Yellowjacket Field/Billings, Mont.

#14 Seattle Pacific 2, Montana State Billings 1 (ot)

Scoring -- 1, SPU, Megan Lindsay (Janie Wurth), 26:58. 2, MSUB, Jennifer Larsen (Whitney Siler), 29:03. 3, SPU, Megan Lindsay (Kendall Thoreson), 94:33.

Shots – SPU 9, MSUB 9.
Saves – SPU 4 (Maddie Dickinson), MSUB 4 (Sabrina Grandke-Bawab).
Corners – SPU 4, MSUB 5.
Fouls – SPU 11, MSUB 8.
Offsides – SPU 2, MSUB 1.
Cautions – None.
Ejections – None.
Attendance – 275.

Records –
Seattle Pacific 10-1-2, 7-1-1 GNAC
Montana State Billings 9-3-1, 6-3-0 GNAC

Next game –
Seattle Pacific at Simon Fraser
Thursday, Oct. 21, 7:00 p.m., Terry Fox Field