Olivia Bodmer penalty shootout heroics leads Rutgers women's soccer past No. 4 USC in Big Ten Tournament semifinals
It had been 3,268 days since the Rutgers women's soccer team last advanced past a top-five-ranked team. That nine-year drought ended on Thursday as the Scarlet Knights (11-3-5, 6-2-3) took down USC on penalty kicks in the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament in St. Louis, Missouri.
Rutgers ended the Trojans' (15-1-3, 10-0-1) 12-game undefeated streak and will now compete for a Big Ten title on Sunday for the first time since 2021 and fourth overall in program history.
The Knights started the game high-pressing and full of intensity compared to No. 4 USC, with senior forward Riley Tiernan testing Trojans goalkeeper Laurence Gladu into a save in the 4th minute.
USC began to settle into the contest and find its groove. In the 17th minute, Maile Hayes, the Trojans' leading scorer with 8 goals this season, had her header effort saved by redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Olivia Bodmer.
To end the first half, Tiernan flashed two shots over the bar but to no avail.
It was a scoreless half, but Rutgers had the 6-5 shot advantage.
Just 1 minute into the second half, USC took the lead through Simone Jackson. The ball bounced around the box and eventually fell to Jackson, who took advantage of the opportunity and slotted her shot into the bottom right corner of the net.
Things went from bad to worse for the Knights, as Tiernan was sent off after a VAR review for violent conduct. Rutgers was now playing down 1 goal and without its best player.
But 3 minutes later, the Knights tied things up at 1-1. Graduate student defender and midfielder Sydney Urban flicked a header to sophomore forward Ashley Baran, who shot the ball perfectly toward the far post and past Gladu into the back of the net for her team-high 6th goal of the season.
With Rutgers playing down one player, the Trojans dominated possession and had a majority of the chances.
The Knights parked the bus and kept USC off the board, sending the game into extra time.
The Trojans came inches away from scoring the golden goal about 4 minutes into extra time, but freshman defender Claire Hammill made a hero-like goal-line clearance to keep her team alive.
That same strategy continued in the second half of extra time, with Bodmer making a huge save to deny Kayla Colbert and Hayes missing a golden chance to win the game.
"I did what I had to do but it was a team effort, everyone included," Bodmer said.
After 20 minutes of extra time, penalty kicks would have to settle the outcome of the game.
Senior defender Emily Mason took the first penalty kick, blasting her shot into the top right corner.
"I knew that me making my PK would set the standard and I know that my PK represented not just me making it but the whole team's success and everyone’s hard work," Mason said on her penalty. "I felt like me making it put a positive mindset in everyone else and that everyone else is capable of doing it."
From there, Rutgers continued to score its penalties, and Bodmer saved all three penalties she faced, shutting out USC and sealing the 3-0 shootout win.
"The pressure isn't really on me, it's on the girls shooting and I was just trying to do whatever I could to help my teammates and my sisters," Bodmer said.
The Knights will look to win their first-ever Big Ten title on Sunday against either UCLA or Washington. The game will kick off at 1 p.m. and will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network and 88.7 WRSU-FM.
"When you go down to 10 players you have to be really good in how you defend," said head coach Mike O'Neill. "You gotta be really good in your habitats and details and making sure at the same time that you get an opportunity."
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