OT Win Gives Soccer A Huge Momentum Push Into MAC Tournament

Thursday, October 28

Ypsilanti, Mich.

3 p.m.

Central Michigan University

9-7-1, 6-4-1

Eastern Michigan

2-13-3, 1-8-2

Central Mich.

Eastern Mich.

Photo by: Keara Chaperon '22

OT Win Gives Soccer A Huge Momentum Push Into MAC Tournament

10/28/2021 6:20:00 PM | Soccer

Box Score

Dobrowolski's goal gives CMU its 5th extra-time victory of the year

By: Andy Sneddon, CMUChippewas.com

YPSILANTI, Mich. – Another dramatic overtime win. And now it's on to the Mid-American Conference Tournament.

Sophomore Jaelyn Dobrowolski scored in the in the 97^th minute on Thursday, lifting the Central Michigan soccer team to a 2-1 overtime victory over Eastern Michigan at the Eagles' Scicluna Field.

The Chippewas go into the six-team MAC Tournament as the fifth seed. They open on Sunday, Oct. 31 (1 p.m.), at Buffalo. CMU won at Buffalo, 1-0, on Oct. 10.

"I've been telling (my players) for weeks that when we get into the tournament, we're going to be a tough game for everybody we play," third-year CMU coach Jeremy Groves said.

CMU is 9-7-1, 6-4-1 MAC. The Chippewas, who are 5-2-1 in their last eight matches, extended their unbeaten streak to three games with their fifth victory in seven extra-time contests this season.

The Chippewas desperately needed points entering their critical final three-game stretch. They began with a 1-1 tie at Kent State, which at the time was tied for second place in the league. CMU then posted a 3-2 win in double overtime over league-leading Ohio three days later in their home finale.

When the dust settled after Thursday's win at EMU, the Chippewas had earned seven of a possible nine points over that oh-so-important three-game stretch.

"I think that kind of just cemented in the players' minds the belief that, 'You know what, we can really do this,'" Groves said of the win over Ohio. "I think that's huge."

CMU entered Thursday's game in sixth place, one point ahead of Miami (Ohio). The RedHawks lost to Ball State, 2-0, on Thursday. The Chippewas got word of that result, which guaranteed them a tourney spot, as they headed into overtime against the Eagles.

But it hardly mattered to those in maroon and gold.

"We didn't want to have to rely on anybody else to get us into the tournament," Groves said. "We wanted to take care of our own business and that's what we did.

"At the end of (regulation) we'd already figured out that Ball State had won, and I told the team at that point and the response was 'We don't care; we want to win this match.'"

Eastern scored in the 49^th minute to seize a 1-0 lead. Less than two minutes later, Chesney Wargo scored to tie it.

"To score a goal so quickly after we had just conceded one was huge," Groves said. "Then we're back to level and we're pushing for the winner at that point.

"It's the mentality, it's the desire, which are words that we talk about often. We've got that right now and this group has had that all season."

It was the first goal of the season for Wargo, a senior, and the third of her career. Dobrowolski's goal was her second of the season and the fourth of her career.

Both goals were unassisted.

The Chippewas outshot the Eagles, 26-13, and finished with a 9-3 edge in shots on goal. CMU had seven corner kicks to EMU's four.

CMU goalkeeper Allison LaPoint made two saves.

Groves said the Chippewas, particularly the veterans on the team, had extra motivation heading into Thursday's regular-season finale with the Eagles. CMU had won just six of 25 meetings with Eastern in a series that began in 1998. CMU and had not won in Ypsilanti since 2016.

"I told the team that our record against this team is not very good and that's something we need to start changing today," Groves said, adding that Thursday's outcome, and the Chippewas' late-season surge, is an indication of how far the program has come and where it is headed.

"I think that as a coaching staff our message is getting through. We've tried to explain that the hard work and the mentality and the toughness will carry you a long way in this league.

"A lot of games in the MAC are won and lost by fine margins and I think that's one thing that I'm really pleased with with this group. We haven't given up many goals all year and the games that we have unfortunately lost have been by just one goal.

"They've really, really worked hard this season and that's something that I'm really proud of them for. They've shown up every day. I don't ever remember in training saying, 'Hey, this is not good enough.' They've always brought that energy and that work ethic."