Women's College Soccer
Rider University 4, Delaware State University 3 (ot)
Cottam Goal, Assist
LAWRENCEVILLE-Junior Demi Mello (Mattituck, N.Y./Mattituck) scored on a header off of a corner kick to give Rider an overtime win over Delaware State Friday night on Ben Cohen Field.
"We played well," said Rider head coach Drayson Hounsome. "It was a crazy game. It doesn't really matter how we got the result, what matters is that we won."
The Broncs (7-2-1) received goals from four different players. "We have so many players who can score," Hounsome said of his team, that has eight different players in the scoring column.
Rider took a 1-0 lead just 6:18 into the game when sophomore Bridgette Bartkowski (Marlton, NJ/Cherokee) took a pass from freshman Amber Mello (Mattituck, N.Y./Mattituck) and scored her third goal of the season.
"I saw 'Gette make a run and she was wide open," Amber Mello said, "so I passed her a through ball. I was afraid she was off sides but I guess she wasn't."
"Amber gives us an additional dimension in terms of possession," Hounsome said. "She is really good at keeping the ball and is a good attacking midfielder."
"I like having Amber on the team," Demi Mello said. "I like having her come in knowing that I can help her adjust and she actually helps me because I used to get home sick a lot and having her here makes it a lot easier."
The Broncs took a 2-0 lead when sophomore Jennifer Meier (Sayville, NY/St. Anthony's) took a pass from junior Angela Monaco (Holtsville, N.Y./Sachem) and scored her sixth goal of the season.
Meier now has 12 career goals in just 26 games played as a Bronc.
DSU (1-9-1) got on the board when a corner kick went into the Bronc net and tied the score at 2-2 on a rebound 12 minutes into the second half.
Junior Abi Cottam (Leominster, England/Ludlow) gave Rider a 3-2 lead with her eighth goal of the season. Cottam entered the game ranked 23rd in the nation in goals.
The visiting Hornets again tied the score at 3-3 with 12 minutes left in regulation.
In overtime, Cottam served a corner kick to the elder Mello who scored her second goal of the season. Cottam entered the game ranked 15th in the nation in points per game and 22nd in assists. "You know Abi can put in a great ball and we know we have someone on the end of it like Demi, who is usually great on the chances. She does a lot of work that goes unseen. Tonight she came up with a great header to win it."
"Abi played a good ball and I just happened to get a head on it," said Demi Mello. "It feels good."
Rider out-shot DSU 39-6, including 26-4 in shots on goal. "I think we were definitely the better team tonight," Cottam said, "and we knew we were going to win."
The loss was the fourth straight for the Hornets.
Rider is now 5-0 against Delaware State, including a 3-0 win last year in Dover.
The victory was the fifth in a row for the Broncs, the longest winning streak in the team's 15-year history. "Let's make it six," Hounsome said.
"I think it is amazing that we've won five in a row," Amber Mello said. "We have to keep it going."
Rider hosts Holy Cross Sunday afternoon at 3pm. "They turned us over last year in overtime," Hounsome said, "so hopefully we can get some revenge. They are a good team with good players."
"It's going to be a tough game," Cottam said, "but hopefully we can carry on this momentum."
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