Sports fans who are still laboring under the false impression that soccer is boring could have learned a thing or two Sunday afternoon at the Mike Rose Soccer Complex in Collierville.
Memphis forward Kaitlyn Atkins took a perfect feed from Christabel Oduro and slipped a shot past UTEP goalkeeper Sarah Dilling to give the Lady Tigers a breathtaking double-overtime victory, 2-1, in the championship game of the Conference USA Tournament.
The goal, which came during the 103rd minute, ignited a near- capacity crowd and gave Memphis its fifth straight C-USA Tournament championship and an automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament. The Tigers will find out this afternoon when and where they play in the opening round, which begins Friday.
"It's something I'll remember for a lifetime," said Atkins, who was mobbed by her teammates just seconds after the winning goal left her foot. "It's not as much fun at the bottom of those dog piles as some people think. But this is still the greatest feeling in the world."
The Lady Tigers (21-0-1) were the clear favorites entering the conference tournament. But the road to another title was anything but easy.
Memphis trailed for only the second time this season before finally winning Wednesday's quarterfinal matchup against Tulsa in overtime. Then the Lady Tigers took a hard-fought decision, 1-0, over East Carolina in the semifinals Friday night.
Things were tough again Sunday, with Dilling holding Memphis scoreless in the first half. But thankfully for the Lady Tigers, Memphis goalkeeper Elise Kuhar-Pitters was just as tough, and the two teams went to the break tied 0-0.
"Their goalkeeper made some big saves," said Memphis head coach Brooks Monaghan. "If we had been playing against just an average keeper, we wouldn't have had so much trouble. But she did a great job."
Memphis finally got a shot past Dilling in the 59th minute when Oduro took a pass from Lizzy Hildebrandt at the left edge of the box, spun to her right and arched the ball into the net. Her 12th goal of the season gave the Lady Tigers a 1-0 lead.
But seventh-seeded UTEP (11-8-4) refused to go quietly. Brittany Kindzierski fired a shot past Kuhar-Pitters from the center of the box in the 75th minute to tie the game, 1-1, and ultimately force overtime.
After a scoreless first overtime, Oduro won the ball at the end line during the 103rd minute and seemed poised to make a shot on goal herself. But instead she fed Atkins at the center of the box, in perfect position to fire in the game-winner.
"My angle just wasn't good enough, and it would have been a wasted shot," said Oduro, who was named Offensive MVP of the tourney. "I just fed it over to K.K., and she made a perfect shot."
Atkins said she knew the ball was going in when it left her foot.
"I had that really good feeling about it," she said. "I knew it was going in. I knew we were going to win our fifth straight title."
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