LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Bellarmine University women's soccer team has tended to play at its best this season when it faces a deficit.

On Sunday at Owsley B. Frazier Stadium, Coach Chris Tinius implored the Knights to compete as if they were behind once overtime arrived in a critical Great Lakes Valley Conference showdown against Rockhurst.

The urgency and aggression was evident, as junior forward Kenzi Gooley scored the "golden goal" a little over a minute into the extra frame in a thrilling 3-2 victory for the Knights.

Freshman forward Isabella Zamborini tied the match with a goal in the 89th minute for Bellarmine (7-4-1, 5-2-1 GLVC), while sophomore defender Ellie Vandergriff scored in the first half against the Hawks (6-5-1, 5-3). Junior forward Annabel Moore and junior defender Erika Joldrichsen registered assists for the Knights, who rallied back from two deficits.

"I feel like we just played the exact same game as Friday (in a 2-1 double-overtime loss to Lewis) and the same game as Quincy (in a 2-1 win Sept. 28), and several others. It was a battle, but we were on the right side today," Tinius said.

With less than two minutes remaining in regulation, Bellarmine trailed Rockhurst 2-1 after Jillian Leech scored in the 71st minute. The Knights, attacking relentlessly, received a throw-in deep on their side of the field. Joldrichsen tossed to Moore near the end line, and Moore headed the ball into the goal area where Zamborini was stationed. In heavy traffic, Zamborini whirled and ripped in the tying goal with only 1:12 remaining. It was Zamborini's third goal of the season.

Rockhurst threated in the final minute, but the match went into overtime. Once there, Gooley and Moore both charged ahead as the Hawks attempted to make a clear on the back line. Gooley knocked the ball down in front of her and found herself with an open shot from 7 yards, which she promptly buried to set off a delirious celebration and cap the comeback win. It was Gooley's third goal of the season.

"One thing our team has shown all year is tremendous fight once we've gone behind," Tinius said. "The talk before overtime was can we keep the mindset like we were behind instead of backing off again. It was a quick answer, but the answer was, 'Yes, we can.' "

Bellarmine finished with a 13-8 advantage in shots, with the difference mostly coming in the first half. Rockhurst's Maddie Dierkes bent in a corner kick to give the Hawks a 1-0 lead in the 27th minute, but Bellarmine answered in the 40th minute when Vandergriff blasted a shot from 30 yards off a deflection on a corner kick that sailed over Rockhurst's pulled-out goalkeeper and into the net.

"In the first half, I thought our midfield was about as good as it's been all year," Tinius said. "The quality of build-ups dropped as we fatigued from a long, hot weekend, but we found a way to win more of those little moments in the end. It was actually a center back (Vandergriff) that showed some composure in recognizing the keeper was out to get the first goal. The second two were gritty, blue-collar goals that we've been starved for, so that was awesome to see."

Bellarmine plays Friday at Missouri-St. Louis and Sunday at Truman State.

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