Feb. 26, 2010

Final Stats

ADRIAN, Mich. - Junior defenseman Andrea Soloko picked a great time to score her second goal of the season as her second period tally gave Adrian a 2-1 win over Concordia and a 1-0 series lead in the NCHA First Round playoffs.

Soloko's blast from the blueline found its way through traffic and goaltender Lea Jondal at 9:50 of the second period at even strength with assists from Lauren Anastos and Danielle Maludy.

Sara Cole gave Concordia early momentum as she scored on the first Falcon power play at 10:03 of the first period for her fourth of the season. Cole got a rebound in front and buried it past goaltender Dana Timm for a 1-0 lead. Bradi Jonasson and Carley Piras each had an assist on the goal.

Adrian scored twice in the second and then held off the Falcons in the third. Jessica Grubbs scored her 13th goal of the season at 4:00 to tie the game at 1-1. Grubbs jammed home a deflected shot off the stick of Dana Funkenhauser who skated over the blueline and fired a shot on goal. The deflection came right to Grubbs on the right side of the goal and she got the equalizer.

Soloko's goal put Adrian ahead to stay at 2-1 after 40 minutes. Adrian had a 14-8 shot on goal edge in the middle stanza. Concordia pushed the tempo in the third and outshot Adrian, 16-8, as Timm made one great save after another. The biggest save of the game for Timm came on a penalty shot at 7:22 of the third. Maludy covered the puck in the crease and Samantha Meuwissen made a nice move and tried going high over Timm's left shoulder. Timm's reflexes came at just the right moment as she turned the shot away and preserved the one-goal advantage.

Late in the game, Funkenhauser was called for interference at 18:09 and Concordia used their timeout for one final push. The Falcons emptied their net with 49 seconds to play for an extra attacker and a 6-on-4 advantage but could not break through. Adrian had a 32-31 shot on goal edge for the game. Concordia went 1-for-3 on the power play while Adrian was 0-for-2. The Falcons had 11 shots on goal during the three power plays. Timm made 30 saves for the Bulldogs while Jondal also had 30 for CU. These two teams will conclude their series tomorrow at 2:00 p.m. The Bulldogs will advance with a win or tie while Concordia needs to win in regulation to force a 20-minute mini-game.