Cowgirls Hold Off Bulldogs

The Oklahoma State Cowgirls netted two early goals and held off Fresno State as No. 7 OSU posted a 2-0 victory on Sunday afternoon at the Cowgirl Soccer Complex.

OSU goalie AD Franch tied a season high with five saves, four of them coming in the second half, to notch her fourth shutout of the season and 36th of her career. Carson Michalowski and Megan Marchesano scored goals as OSU improved to 9-1-0 heading into the start of Big 12  play next week.

OSU got on the scoreboard at the 15:41 mark. After Marchesano was fouled in the box, Michalowski stepped up and drilled a penalty kick to the upper left post for a 1-0 advantage. The goal was the first of the season for the senior defender. 

The Cowgirls' second goal came just over five minutes later with Marchesano beating an FSU defender and goalie Katie Devault, who came off the line but was unable to stop OSU's leading scorer from sending a shot to the far post for her sixth goal of the season.

OSU took the 2-0 advantage into intermission, but an energized Fresno State squad controlled the offensive attack in the second.

The Bulldogs (0-6-3) outshot OSU by a 13-4 margin in the final 45 minutes but the Cowgirls were able to keep FSU off the scoreboard, thanks largely to the All-American Franch.

In the 49th minute, it looked as though FSU had gotten on the scoreboard when, following a save by Franch, the Bulldogs sent the rebound into the back of the net. However, they were whistled for offsides to erase the score.

OSU begins defense of its Big 12 championship Friday when the Cowgirls travel to Lawrence, Kan., to take on Kansas before a Sunday showdown at West Virginia.