Westminster trips Notre Dame in OT

It took extra time for Notre Dame and Westminster to decide their game Saturday.

"We didn't come all the way down here just to lose in overtime," Westminster coach Dan Legters told his team as the game headed to overtime.

Westminster responded by putting three shots on goal in the first minute of overtime. Jake Grimes put the game-winner in the net on a rebounded corner kick two minutes into overtime for the 2-1 victory.

"Jake has been our unsung hero this season," Legters said. "He came into the game with one goal and nine assists and managed both of our goals today.

"It's always a battle when we play Notre Dame. We worked on conditioning all week in practice and I think it helped us today. We had a little something left in the tank going into overtime."

Notre Dame's Ethan Huber finishes his flip throw against Westminster on Saturday. (SEAN MAGEE ~ Special to the Southeast Missourian)

Westminster started aggressively by putting 10 shots on goal in the first half. Bulldogs goalie James Holloway stopped nine of them.

"James always looks great in the net," Notre Dame coach Brad Wittenborn said.

Westminster had three other shots bounce off the posts and go wide.

"We've had shots bounce off the post in every game this season," Legters said. "They never seem to bounce in front of the net, though."

Notre Dame got on the board first when forward Joe Froemsdorf was tripped in front of the goal. He put the ensuing penalty kick into the left side of the net, but the lead didn't last long.

Notre Dame's Ethan Huber is halfway through his flip throw during Saturday's game against Westminster.

Westminster answered two minutes later on Grimes' first goal.

"We played a tough first half into the wind," Wittenborn said. "I was happy with the way the guys played."

The teams played evenly in the second half and neither team was able to gain an advantage. Notre Dame had a golden opportunity with 10 minutes left when Froemsdorf beat the defense and knocked the ball away from the Westminster goalie. The defense recovered and quickly kicked the ball out of bounds.

Westminster's best chance came on a diving header from Grimes with four minutes left in regulation. The shot traveled just wide of Holloway's outstretched arms and missed the goal to the right.

Notre Dame dropped to 6-6 with the loss.

Notre Dame senior Ke-Ke Kellum battles for the ball against Westminster's Connor Hunsicker during Saturday's game at Notre Dame.

"All in all, we're getting better," Wittenborn said. "Westminster has a real good team and they always play us tough. We're trying to build toward the postseason. The bottom line is we play a difficult schedule and we're working each game to get better."