Neo Workxx » all three of her penalty kicks this season.KEY ST

What seemed like a pipe dream two months ago is now a distinct possibility and a testament to never giving up.The Connecticut Sun were buried as the losses mounted early in the season. But now a late push, Connecticut has won five of six games, and the Sun have a little pep to their step.The Sun went 2-8 in their first 10 games and heading into the Olympics Games break they were 8-16 with a two-game winning streak.Since returning from the Rio break, the Sun have continued to win and what was unthinkable in the heat of the summer is now a golden opportunity for Alex Bentley and Chiney Ogwumike.Connecticut is tied for the eighth and final playoff spot with Seattle. On Sunday, the Sun can make a statement that they are for real, but standing directly in their way is the Minnesota Lynx with the leagues best record (tied with Los Angeles) at 23-5.Two of those losses came at the hands of the Sun, so Connecticut wont be intimidated when the two collide at 7 p.m. EDT at the Target Center in Minneapolis.Back on July 7, the Sun overcame Lynx star Maya Moores 40 points to post an overtime win. Then on Aug. 26, Moore was held to eight points as the Sun defeated the Lynx again.That game seemed to give the Sun a shot of confidence heading into the seasons homestretch.In Fridays win, Ogwumike scored 22 points and grabbed 10 rebounds against the Phoenix Mercury. Jasmine Thomas notched 18 points and Bentley added 16 points as the Sun were playing their first game since rookie Morgan Tuck, the third overall pick, was lost for the season because of a knee injury.Tuck was the top reserve coming off the bench, averaging just under 17 minutes and 7.0 points per game.Her loss will be felt, but Jonquel Jones and Courtney Williams picked up the slack and combined for 15 points and seven rebounds in the win over the Mercury.As usual, Moore paced the Lynx against the pesky Mystics in a win on Friday. Moore scored 27, including 12 from the free-throw line.But if it werent for Sylvia Fowles, the Lynx might be trying to recover from an upset instead of trying to maintain hold on the best record in the league.Fowles recorded 15 points and 17 rebounds, while piloting the defense that held Connecticut to less than 40 percent shooting from the field.The Lynx wont take the Sun lightly, in fact, they will have revenge on their minds. Buy Vapormax Australia . -- Washington Redskins tight end Fred Davis was charged Thursday with driving while intoxicated, a day after he was suspended for an NFL substance-abuse policy violation. Cheap Vapormax Online . -- The Portland Timbers and Real Salt Lake played to a 0-0 tie Saturday night that left the top of the Western Conference standings unchanged. http://www.vapormaxcheapaustralia.com/ .Y. -- Bills receiver Stevie Johnson has a bone to pick with the NFL schedule maker. Vapormax Australia Cheap .Y. -- Canadas Kaillie Humphries and Heather Moyse have another World Cup gold medal after winning the two-women bobsled race on Saturday in Lake Placid, N. Vapormax Cheap Australia . Robinson finished with 17 points, all but two in the second half, and Lawson had 14 after halftime and finished with a game-high 11 assists as the Nuggets handed Dallas its first home loss in eight games this season. J.J. Hickson led Denver with 22, and Kenneth Faried added 10 points and 10 rebounds. COLUMBIA, S.C. -- Senior midfielder Chelsea Drennans penalty kick in the 69th minute propelled No. 1 seed South Carolina womens soccer to a 1-0 victory over fourth-seeded BYU in the third round of the NCAA Tournament Saturday night at Stone Stadium. With the win, the third-ranked Gamecocks (21-1-1) advanced to the Elite Eight for the second time in the last three years after notching their fifth victory over a ranked opponent this season. Fourth-ranked BYU ended its season at 18-3-1 following the loss.Carolina was awarded a penalty kick after junior midfielder Savannah McCaskill found some space and charged into the left side of the box, where she was immediately taken down by a BYU defender. Drennan lined up for the spot kick, and fired a shot into the right side past BYU goalkeeper Hannah Clark to put the Gamecocks in control with just over 20 minutes to play.The Gamecocks withstood BYUs bid for an equalizer down the stretch, starting in the 82nd minute when the Cougars were awarded a free kick near midfield. The ball in from the set piece floated dangerously into the box, but Carolina freshman goalkeeper Mikayla Krzeczowski alertly came off her line to grab it before BYUs Nadia Gomes was able to attempt a header. In the final minute, Krzeczowski again denied a scoring chance from Gomes, snatching the ball at the near post to prevent a shot from the Cougar forward.Krzeczowski finished the match with three saves for the Gamecocks, who put nine attempts on target. BYU outshot Carolina 14-13 for the match, and the Cougars totaled eight stops, including three team saves. Both teams accumulated double-digit fouls in Saturdays top-five battle, and BYU sported a 5-2 advantage in corner kicks.After BYU maintained much of the possession early, Carolina began to see chances down the stretch of the first half and put three headers on frame that were cleared off the line. In the 24th minute, McCaskills free kick from midfield found senior Paige Bendell, whose header was blocked at the goal line. Bendell came inches away from putting Carolina on the board four minutes later when her back-to-back headers called for teams saves following a Gamecock corner kick.In the 38th minute, a defensive miscue left Carolina senior forward Claire Studebaker with an empty net opportunity. Her shot sailed towards net before a BYU defender again denied a goal to keep the match scoreless. The Gamecocks puut seven shots on frame in the first half and limited the Cougars to one attempt on target in the opening 45 minutes.dddddddddddd.Following Drennans tally off the penalty kick, senior striker Sophie Groff nearly doubled the advantage when she saw Clark again come off her line. Her shot sent the ball dipping towards the top of the net, but Clark was able to recover to make a leaping save and knock the ball out of bounds.Clark collected five saves in the match, while Krzeczowski improved to 18-1-1 on the year and earned her 11th shutout of 2016. Saturday marked the first meeting between the Gamecocks and Cougars, and the result snapped BYUs seven-match winning streak.QUOTABLEIm so proud of this team and what theyve done all year. I keep saying, you dont really understand what youve done until you can reflect upon it. Were all so focused on the run and meeting our own expectations of doing well. This team has shown all year (that) they find a way to win and they can play against the best. -- South Carolina womens soccer coach Shelley SmithGAMECHANGERSenior midfielder Chelsea Drennan converted her penalty kick from the spot to put the Gamecocks in front late in the match. The captain has converted all three of her penalty kicks this season.KEY STATThe Gamecocks held the Cougars to just three attempts on frame. BYU entered the match ranked third in Division I with 58 goals on the year.NOTABLESouth Carolina improved to 7-2-1 in NCAA Tournament play when facing an opponent at Stone Stadium.The Gamecocks have won three of their last four matches against teams ranked in the top five. All three victories have come at home.South Carolina has yet to trail in a match at Stone Stadium this season. The Gamecocks have outscored opponents 37-3 at home in 2016.Carolina improved to 2-1 in the NCAA Sweet 16 with this weekends win. Next week will mark the programs second appearance in the Elite Eight.The Gamecocks, who picked up their 14th shutout of the year on Saturday, now sit one clean sheet short of the program single-season record.UP NEXTSouth Carolina will host either second-seeded North Carolina or third-seeded Clemson in the Elite Eight on Fri., Nov. 25, at Stone Stadium. The time and opponent of the match will be determined at the conclusion of this weekend. ' ' '