Kent State's Female Kicker Makes Her Point

April Goss becomes the second woman in NCAA history to score
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Sep 13, 2015 12:40 PM CDT
Kent State's Female Kicker Makes Her Point
In this Oct. 19, 2013, file photo, Kent State kicker April Goss (91) kicks during warmups before taking on South Alabama in an NCAA college football game in Mobile, Ala.   (G.M. Andrews)

Her kick wasn't perfect, but that hardly mattered to April Goss. When she finally got her big chance, Goss made her point—and history. A four-year member of Kent State's team, Goss kicked an extra point in the first half yesterday in a 45-13 win over Delaware State, becoming the second woman to score in a major college football game. Wearing No. 91, Goss made the kick with 4:30 left in the second quarter, giving the Golden Flashes a 29-6 lead. Following the touchdown, starting kicker Shane Hynes initially went on the field, but coach Paul Haynes called a timeout and sent in Goss. Her kick veered right off the hold, giving her a moment of panic, but went through the uprights. When the officials signaled the kick was good, she was mobbed by her teammates.

"I was a little disappointed I didn't make a better kick," she said in a phone interview. "I was sure it was going right, but it did go through. I'll probably beat myself up for that for a little while, but it was awesome." Katie Hnida kicked a pair of extra points for New Mexico in 2003. According to STATS LLC, Goss, who was a soccer player in high school before deciding to try football, appears to be the only woman currently on a Division I roster. Haynes had been trying to get Goss into a game for the past two seasons. Before her historic kick, the closest she came was making the game-winning extra point in the 2014 spring game. "She works her tail off," says Haynes. "She's the first one out there in practice and the last one off the field. Every time someone gets up and talks, one of our players gets up and talks, they always talk about they've got brothers, and a sister." (More Kent State stories.)

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