STORRS, Conn. (October 23, 2009) – The West Virginia women’s soccer team played to a 0-0 double-overtime draw with Connecticut Friday evening at Joseph J. Morrone Stadium. The tie gave WVU its one point needed to secure a spot in the 2009 BIG EAST Championship.

“Playing at Connecticut we knew how tough the environment would be to play in,” said coach Nikki Izzo-Brown, whose team earned a spot in a 10th-striaght conference tournament. “We’re happy to secure the spot despite having several chances to win tonight.

We now turn our attention to playing a tough Providence team and finishing the regular season with a win.”

After a slow first half, WVU turned the heat up offensively in the second half, taking 10 shots in first 20 minutes following intermission.


The Mountaineers finished with a 22-21 edge in shots while Connecticut held a 6-5 advantage in corner kicks.

WVU was paced offensively by All-American midfielder Carolyn Blank and all-BIG EAST forward Megan Mischler with four shots apiece.

Huskie forward Melissa Bosque led UConn with six shots on the night.

Mountaineer goalkeeper Kerri Butler was brilliant in goal, playing her best match of the season in making nine saves in the team’s 10th shutout of the season.

West Virginia moves to 7-5-6 (4-3-3 BIG EAST) and Connecticut goes to 10-6-1 (5-4-1 BIG EAST) on the season.

The tie marks the third straight in the all-time series between the two programs.

The Mountaineers return to action on Sunday at 1 p.m. against Providence. The regular-season finale will be broadcast by Cox Sports Television on a tape-delay basis with Mike Rubin (play-by-play) and Chris Fama (color) calling the action.