SHERIDAN 3, CONESTOGA 2

KITCHENER, Ont. - They had their long stretch of not conceding a goal snapped and had to work hard to even keep the score tied at the half, but ultimately the Sheridan Bruins women's soccer team (5-0 OCAA) did just enough to squeeze out a 3-2 win over Conestoga.

"We hadn't been 4-0 in a long time and maybe it got to our heads today, but we just didn't play well," assistant coach Nadene Boothe said.

It was a tremendous start for the Lady Bruins as they found the score sheet in just the second minute when Paula Simas was able to get her body in front of a clearance attempt and the ball deflected into the Conestoga goal.

The home side was able to equalize just two minutes later however, which was the first goal scored against the Double-Blue this year.

They would face another first just 14 minutes later when Conestoga struck again to take an early 2-1 advantage, and put the Lady Bruins in a trailing position for the first time.

Kaitlyn MacLellan would pull Sheridan level in the 45th minute to make the game 2-2 at the half.

In the 63rd minute the Lady Bruins would score what proved to be the winning goal when Kaysia Williams gathered the ball towards the top of the 18-yard box following a corner kick and scored her first goal of the season.

They continued to apply pressure in search of an insurance marker, but were unable to put one away.

Boothe thinks that the team talk after the first 45 minutes went a long way to getting them the result and hopes that it sticks with the players moving forward.

"I think our halftime speech today gave them a bit of a reality check," she said. "We were down 2-1 for quite some time in that first half and then scored the second half. At halftime, we just quietly ripped them and let them know that the reality is 4-0 means nothing, it's what you do in the next one that counts. We came out with the 3-2 win, so let's hope that going forward they get the message that it's got to be done early, not late."

They have just one day of rest before hosting Redeemer (September 29, 3 p.m.) during Sheridan's annual Homecoming.

Blue notes: When Conestoga scored, it snapped Sheridan's 363-minute streak of not conceding a goal. While the team had put together an impressive stretch of four straight clean sheets, that is nowhere near the team record. The Lady Bruins had kept their opposition scoreless over their last seven contests during the 2004 season.

Source: Sheridan I.T.