One down, one to go. That’s what the 2-1 OT victory over UMass means to the Dayton Flyers after a hard-fought win at Baujan Field in front of 1,011 spectators. In a must-win game, Dayton found a way to claw back from a 1-0 halftime deficit to up-end the Minutewomen and maintain complete control of their destiny as the final games of the schedule unfold. The Flyers improve to 12-4 (7-1) while UMass — in third place in the A-10 standings before Friday’s game — falls to 9-6 (5-2).

The game itself was highly-contested and stakes were extremely high for both sides. UMass and Dayton have been the two most-successful programs in the Atlantic-10 since the Flyers joined the league. While UMass isn’t competing for national championships like they used to, there’s still no mistaking that folks in Amherst, MA, take their soccer seriously. So seriously in fact that either team could have won the game Friday night.

Dayton started off well, controlling the possession game and limiting UMass to few chances on the offensive end. The Flyers sent long balls to sophomore forward Missy Gregg early and often, but none of them turned into serious scoring threats in the first 15 minutes. Dayton kept plugging away however and soon enough Gregg corralled a ball in the middle of the field and took off like a banshee for the goal mouth, leaving UMass defenders in her wake. With only a single defender to beat, Gregg chose not to pull the trigger but instead shoveled a great pass to Megan McKnight streaking for the right side of the goal. The pass was there and the opportunity too, but a near-certain goal never happened as McKnight’s shot was off target.

Just as Dayton looked like they would crack the nets in the first half however, UMass turned a single defensive breakdown into a goal on their only shot of the half. UMass sent a long ball across midfield to the weak side where a streaking midfielder caught up with it a took it to goal. She beat two Flyers on a knife-edge cut and buried it past UD goalkeeper Steph Weisenfeld from 12yds out for the 1-0 lead. Dayton had a couple more opportunities to tack on the equalizer, but the chances weren’t capitalized on and Dayton ended the half down a goal.

The second half started off rather scary as UMass put on the pressure in the first 10 minutes. Dayton survived three or four hairy situations that — had the Minutewomen found the net — could have put the game out of reach. The Flyer defense came up large when they had to however — especially freshman Beth McHugh — and it wasn’t long after that Dayton got down to business and began playing very well.

In the middle of the second half, Dayton put steady pressure on the UMass goalmouth, and enough chances finally paid off as freshman Judi Aschenbrener cleaned up a loose ball from 5yds out that tied the game and gave the Flyers a proverbial shot in the arm. Dayton produced several more scoring chances as the game wore on — many of them as good as it sometimes gets — but Dayton had trouble finishing and UMass used that reality to their own advantage.

UMass forward Brooke Bartlett caused problems all night for the Flyers, and nearly found the net on several occasions. Bartlett possessed incredible speed and made everyone on the field look like they were in slow-motion, that is, everyone but Flyer defender Beth McHugh. Bartlett charged on goal several times for what looked to be a sure score, but each time a Dayton player came up larger than life at the last instant to keep the game tied.

The Flyers tried dropping the hammer in the last three minutes of regulation, clamping down in the UMass defensive third for several corner kicks and free kicks, but the Minutewomen held tough and the game moved into overtime.

Dayton immediately stole the overtime kickoff and tried to go for the jugular, but UMass cleaned things up and mounted an attack of their own down the sidelines. Dayton retook possession however and moved the ball back down the field, this time to the right side where the Flyers put a cross in the box that Showtime Gregg finished off with her head for the game-winner and her league-leading 20th goal on the year. In a contest the Flyers absolutely, positively had to have, Head Coach Mike Tucker’s team once again found a way to rise to the occasion and play a good team well enough to win.

Gregg, who usually dominates, had trouble shaking loose all evening. The Flyers as a team had a case of the fumbles all night as shaky traps and mistouches kept quick attacks from forming, but Gregg had the same difficulty and as the temperature drops on such an evening, the grass and ball accumulate a thin, slick surface of dew to make things tricky. This isn’t necessarily an excuse, but it is worth remembering.

Beth McHugh stood out all evening for her defensive work in the Flyer backfield, and played a major role in bottling up the super-fast Brooke Bartlett when the team needed a crucial tackle or deflection. McHugh was rough and tough all night and, as regulation came to a close, single-handedly beat a UMass player to the ball near the midfield line, carried it down the sideline, and won a corner kick for the Flyers as the clock ticked down. McHugh is built like a greyhound and accelerates past players as if someone flipped on the nitrous oxide. She possesses an entirely different gear than other players and once she gets going, its like Secretariet in the Belmont Stakes. Serious wheels indeed. It goes without saying that McHugh is the UDPride Player of the Game for her prime-time performance.

Dayton played much better than we’ve seen in earlier matches, and did so against a very strong UMass squad. Any victory over UMass is a good one, and the Flyers seem to find a way to give good teams a tough test. The Flyers have a propensity for pulling off the late-game dramatics and it would be a lot easier on the fans if Dayton took care of the outcome a bit earlier in the contest, but Coach Tucker’s squad may be turning a corner. Friday’s victory was a huge win and Dayton played well even despite some shortcomings. Dayton created more than enough chances but had trouble finishing. If the Flyers continue to create as many chances and win the 50/50 balls — especially free kicks and punts — when the time comes that everything falls into place, Dayton will be an extremely tough team to outscore. Sunday’s pivotal matchup against 13-2-1 Rhode Island may just be that sort of game.

Dayton outshot UMass 22-6 and held a 9-2 advantage on corner kicks. If that keeps up, sooner, rather than later, the Flyers will find that sweet spot they’ve been searching for.