BUFFALO, NY – The Alfred University women's soccer team opened the 2019 season with a thrilling double-overtime victory against SUNY Potsdam at the Spartan Classic hosted by D'Youville College.
 
After a successful 2018 season that saw AU women's soccer finish with the most wins (11) since 1999 and reach the post season for the second consecutive year, the Saxons hoped to get off on the right foot in 2019 against a talented SUNY Potsdam Bears team.
 
The contest went scoreless for both halves of regulation and the entire first overtime period.
 
If the game had gone scoreless for a second 10-minute overtime period, it would have been called a tie. 
 
Fortunately for the Saxons' Natalie O'Brien (Syracuse, NY/East Syracuse Minoa Central) had other ideas and netted the team's first goal of the year.
 
Just minutes into the final overtime period, Katline Cartwright (Le Roy, NY/ LeRoy) fed a pass ahead of the action, drawing the Potsdam goalkeeper out of the net. O'Brien then got a piece of it and sent the ball into the back of the net for the huge Saxon victory. 
 
"I thought our team played well," Head Coach Craig Yanni said. "Overall I thought our work rate was good. Potsdam is a good team and this was a very good test for us early in the season. Offensively we did a good job of creating scoring opportunities. Natalie [O'Brien] did a great job to finish the game winner in the second OT." 
 
Alfred will be back on the turf tomorrow afternoon to face-off against host, D'Youville at 2:30 p.m.