Southern Illinois University Athletics issued the following announcement on Dec. 7
Florida State defeated BYU 4-3 in penalties to capture the 2021 DI women's soccer national championship. Yujie Zhao knocked in the last penalty to win the Seminoles their third national title.
Click here to watch our interview with Florida State head coach Mark Krikorian.
Click here to watch our interview with Jaelin Howell.
It was a defensive battle between the 'Noles and the Cougars in the first half, with both teams combining for just five shots. BYU would put a bit of pressure on Florida State in the second half, but goalkeeper Cristina Roque and her defense would fend off the attack.
The first and second overtime would be more of the same, but this time the Seminoles were maintaining majority of possession and defending against BYU counter attacks. Ultimately, no team would find the back of the net, and for the third year in a row, the DI women's soccer championship would come down to penalties.
Last year, FSU was on the wrong side of the PKs losing to Santa Clara. This time around, the Seminoles did not let the moment slip away.
BYU's Mikayla Colohan and FSU's Clara Robbins both made their shots to start the shootout. Jamie Shepard had her shot blocked by Florida State's Cristina Roque and Heather Payne converted her penalty to give Florida State a 2-1 lead. Unlike her teammate, Brecken Mozingo would be able to beat Roque to tie it at two. Gabby Carle had her shot blocked by BYU goalkeeper Cassidy Smith to keep it at two a piece. Roque would come up big once again to stop Bella Folino and shortly after, Jaelin Howell gave the Seminoles the 3-2 advantage.
With the Cougars down to their last chance, it would all come down to Olivia Wade to keep BYU alive. She would do just that with a strike to the bottom-left corner. Now, Yujie Zhao could walk it off. With a stutter-step approach to the ball, she froze Smith and secured FSU's third national title.
Original source can be found here.
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