After beating Bushnell on August 19th, the Oregon State Beavers drew or lost in their next 12 games. That streak is finally over, as the Beavers took down Fresno State 2-0 Thursday night for their first win in the new Pac-12 Conference. The Beavers record now sits at 2-10-4 overall, and 1-2-2 in conference play.
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The Beavers put some pressure on the Fresno State net early, with shots from Sophia Zboyan and Amber Ogbolu in the first few minutes. In the 16th minute, a corner kick from Zboyan found the head of Adele Schwab, who knocked the ball into the bottom right corner of the net.
Fresno State almost responded with a great shot from Abigail Herren, but Ally Larkin made the save to keep the Beavers in front. Grace Wetzel and Amber Ogbolu responded with shots for the Beavers but couldn't find the net. Fouls from the Beavers kept giving the Bulldogs opportunities, but the Oregon State defense held on to keep the lead, entering the half up 1-0.
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The Bulldogs looked dangerous at the start of the second half, with Hayden Crotty-Romero and Tatiana Saunders both forcing saves from Larkin in the 52nd minute. The Beavers weathered the Fresno State attack, and in the 61st minute answered back, when Mary Hoffman picked up a deep ball around midfield, beat two Fresno State defenders, and shot the ball right past Jessica Reis.
The Beavers had a 2-0 lead and thirty minutes to kill, but if this year's Oregon State team knows anything it's that a two goal lead is nowhere near safe. The Bulldogs kept getting opportunities, but they never found the numbers to make a truly dangerous attack on the Oregon State goal.
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As the minutes wound down, Fresno State finally found it's chance. A counterattack in the 87th minute set up Aniston Renovato for a shot, but Ally Larkin made the save. That gave the Bulldogs a corner, but they couldn't find a shot. The Bulldogs got one last chance when a foul on Ally Larkin gave them a free kick, but they couldn't capitalize on it and the Beavers got their win.
Ally Larkin came up huge for the Beavers Thursday night, playing physically and aggressive while picking up seven saves. Mary Hoffman and Sophia Zboyan gave the Beavers some of their best scoring chances, and Evee Stoddard came up with big defensive plays.
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The team worked so hard for this. They've come so close to picking up a big win so many times this season, but they've finally gotten it done. A berth in the conference tournament isn't likely, but they've proved they belong in the Pac-12.
They're next test will be Sunday, October 25th, when they host Colorado State.
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