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UNLEASH THE GRIZZ

Oakland University Athletics

Scoreboard

Frankie Mudd Goal
1
North Dakota UND (0-0-2, 0-0-0)
1
Oakland OAK (0-1-1, 0-0-0)
North Dakota UND
(0-0-2, 0-0-0)
1
Final
1
Oakland OAK
(0-1-1, 0-0-0)
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
North Dakota UND 1 0 1
Oakland OAK 1 0 1

Game Recap: Women's Soccer | | Jordan Nelson

Mudd Scores First Goal of the Season as Oakland Ties North Dakota in Home Opener

ROCHESTER, Mich. - The Golden Grizzlies opened up play at home with a tough, physical game against the North Dakota Fighting Hawks.

The match started off in North Dakota's favor as they drew an early corner kick in the second minute. As North Dakota's Milan Cordone let loose on a cross into the box near the back goal post, the wind carried the ball and turned a cross into a goal, notching Cordone her first goal of the season and a rare Olimpico goal directly off the corner kick to give the Fighting Hawks an early 1-0 lead.

Oakland seemed to get a wake up call from the early goal, and flipped the switch in the early going, creating early runs and opportunities at goals.

After racking up three shots, two by sophomore Sunniva Raaen, in the coming minutes, the Golden Grizzlies broke through with an equalizer in the 24th minute as Gabriella Ruffino lofted a ball past the North Dakota defense, where sophomore Frankie Mudd made a few slick moves to clear the goalie and walk into her first goal of the season, tying the game at 1-1 with just over 20 minutes left in the first half.

With momentum on their side, Oakland dominated the first half, keeping possession on the Fighting Hawks' side of the field and wearing down the opponents' defense, outshooting North Dakota eight to four, notching four shots on goal to North Dakota's one as well.

Despite a dominating half, the game remained tied at one apiece going into the half.

The second half took on a much slower, defensive minded pace for both teams. Oakland stood tall and once again limited the Fighting Hawks on offense as they accumulated just one shot in the final 45 minutes.

The Golden Grizzlies continued to attack, but the same looks weren't available as North Dakota packed their defense back. First half goal-scorer Mudd kept her foot on the gas, tallying an additional four shots in the half, but none were able to reach the back of the net, including a potential game-winning goal in the 89th minute that sailed just wide.

The teams would end the game square at a 1-1 draw, as Oakland moves to 0-1-1 on the season.

Individually, Oakland continues to see impressive showings from an abundance of players. Marina Downing had a strong performance, tallying two shots on goal and using her size and strength to keep possession in the final third of the field. Sophomore Lisa Kazandjian also showed great poise with the ball on the outside, sending quality crosses into the box for chances to score, and sophomore Sunniva Raeen tallied three shots of her own. Defenders Mia Tuka, Gabby Ruffino, and Putri Sazali all played the full 90 minutes, putting together a high-quality defensive performance for Oakland. 

As a team, the Golden Grizzlies shot nine more times than the Fighting Hawks (14-to-5), while putting four more shots on goal (5-to-1).

"I'm proud of the team today. They came out with intensity, controlling the match from the start. Although we were a bit unlucky to concede a goal from a set piece, the response was fantastic, especially with Frankie Mudd scoring her first goal of the season. I'm also thrilled to see our freshman center back, Gabby Ruffino, earning her first career assist," said Oakland Head Coach Devin Zvosec. "Overall, it was a strong performance where we controlled possession and created a lot of high-quality chances. Our next step is to focus on converting more of those opportunities into goals. Looking forward to seeing the team compete against a good Akron side on Thursday".

The Golden Grizzlies look to earn their first win of the season on Thursday, Aug. 22 at 7 p.m. as they travel to Akron for their first of two back-to-back road games.
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