Langhorne, Pa. – For the second time this young season, the Bryn Mawr soccer team had to go into overtime to determine the result of a game. Fortunately for the Owls, this time it was the Yellow and Black that came away victorious. Bryn Mawr saw a 2-0 lead slip away at Cairn earlier Saturday afternoon before coming back with a thrilling game-winning goal just over four minutes into the first overtime period. Marcela Dorfsman-Hopkins and Alice Bell scored first half goals for the Owls while junior midfielder Nina Bertolami tallied the game winner in the extra frame.

The Owls (2-3, 0-1 Centennial) got the attack started early in today's contest, as Dorfsman-Hopkins caught the woodwork on the second shot of the game just 3:54 into play. Bryn Mawr continued to pepper the net, and their early control finally paid off just before the 16 minute mark. Veronica Roux found Dorfsman-Hopkins open with a fine pass, and the senior forward laced a shot past Highlanders keeper Mackenzie Paugh to give the Owls a 1-0 lead in the game. Bryn Mawr would double up on the hosts just ten minutes later. This time, it was Madeline Mark who made a great pass to find Alice Bell, and Bell netted her second goal of the season to put the Yellow and Black up 2-0 midway through the first half.

Cairn (1-2) managed to stitch together a roughshod defense over the remainder of the half to limit Bryn Mawr to just those first two goals, even though the Owls outshot the hosts by a margin of 16-1 in the half. Paugh made six saves in each half to keep the Highlanders in the game, and Cairn would capitalize on that strong effort by coming back with two goals of their own in the second half. Courtney Novak halved the deficit right on the 58 minute mark with her fifth goal of the young season off an assist from Laurissa Wager. Bryn Mawr continued to dominate possession throughout the half, and still held their 2-1 lead with under ten minutes to play. However, Cairn managed find the equalizer with just over five minutes left to play, as Wager this time blasted the ball into the net herself to make it a 2-2 game.

As the teams regrouped to head into overtime, many fans might believe that the Owls would feel mentally defeated after giving up their 2-0 lead. However, Bryn Mawr and head coach Erin DeMarco did a fantastic job of refocusing and regaining momentum. The Owls once again had Cairn on the ropes from the get-go; just 3:38 in, Bell rocketed a shot off the crossbar, nearly giving the Owls the golden goal they were looking for. Bryn Mawr managed to collect the rebound and reset, now with possession on the right side of the attacking third. Once again it was Roux who set up the goal, dropping a pass to Nina Bertolami. The junior roped a shot on goal in the driving rain, and Paugh managed to get her hands on the shot. However, the pace carried the ball through her hands and into the netting, setting off a wild celebration from the Bryn Mawr squad.

With the win, the Owls move a game back of .500, and they'll get a great chance to even their record back up at 3-3 when they face off against Cedar Crest on Monday afternoon. Bryn Mawr will host the Falcons on Applebee Field, with the game set to start at 1:00 PM. Be sure to follow the action live via our live stats and live video broadcast throughout the game!