Engineering Cup

Last weekend the Polar Bears traveled east to compete in the 2011 Engineering Cup hosted by Stevens Institute of Technology. The bears hit the road last week and despite some tricky navigating through the Pennsylvania hills they arrived in Hoboken ready to roll. After a training session at the Stevens campus the bears set off for downtown Hoboken for a delicious dinner and of course a stop at Carlo's Cake Shop, home of the "Cake Boss!" After a fun evening of relaxing the night was capped off by a great view of the Manhattan skyline from the top of the Stevens campus. On Saturday ONU took on their first match against New York University. The Polar bears got off to a great start with a goal in the 5th minute from Freshman Kristina Klusek off an assist from Sophomore Abbie Schauble. However NYU would find the equalizer before the half off of a free kick just outside the 18. In the second half ONU would continue to press hard to find the go ahead goal but it was not meant to be. Instead NYU would score in the 78th minute to take the lead and again in the 87th minute after a questionable no call from the officials. In all the Polar Bears would out shoot the Violets but the bears took their first loss of the season. “I thought we played well for most of the game,” added Head Coach Mark Batman. “We created some great moments in the game and NYU is a very tough opponent. We controlled the tempo for most of the match and unfortunate we couldn’t capitalize on our chances in the final 1/3. I know we can play better and be more efficient. As soon as some of our other players start to contribute offensively, we are going to be a very tough team to beat.”


ONU would return to action on Sunday to take on tournament hosts Stevens Institute of Technology. Before kickoff both teams would participate in a moment of silence to honor the 10th anniversary of September 11th. Each team in the tournament also wore red bandanas in honor of NCAA athlete and 9/11 hero Welles Crowther.
Despite creating dangerous scoring opportunities from the start, the Ducks would jump on the scoreboard first in the 12th minute. Stevens would take their lead into the half but it would not last long as Kristina Klusek would put the Polar Bears on the board just a few minutes into the second half. This would be Klusek's second goal of the tournament and her fourth of the season. Sophomore Lauren Brown would be credited with the assist. ONU’s second goal came from Senior Alyssa Merrick. Fellow senior Chelsea Chadwick found Merrick in front of the Stevens back line, she turned, beat a player, and beat the Stevens goal keeper from 25 yards out. With just over 10 minutes to go in regulation the Ducks would fight their way back into the game to score the equalizer and force overtime. The Polar Bears had a golden opportunity taken away early in the second overtime after Sophomore Sami Atkinson was taken down in the box on a breakaway (see clip) but no call was given. The game would end in a tie, but ONU would take the edge in PK's to round out the tournament. Overall ONU would out shoot Stevens 21 to 15. “Our players played really well and deserved better results on both days of the tournament,” head coach Mark Batman said. “But I am really happy with our progress from this weekend. We now have to look forward to a big in region week for us. The past two games were great preparation for the turf at Wittenberg and our home match v Thomas More on Saturday. I’m excited to move on from this weekend and see some great matches this week.”
The Bears remain as a top team in the region in the latest NSCAA poll and will return to action this Wednesday when they travel to take on regional opponent Wittenberg.