Contact: Elliott Carr, Sports Information Graduate Assistant, 630-637-5302
Box Score
Sep 4., 2016 – Showing resilience to come back from an initial deficit, the North Central College men's soccer team were able to secure a 1-1 draw in double overtime against the Carleton College Knights, on Sunday afternoon at Bell Field.
The first half was played to a stalemate, with effective defensive play from both sides preventing either team from scoring. With 25:10 on the clock, junior forward Ramon Marin almost found the back of the net, as did sophomore forward Gavin Sanchez in the 36th minute. Senior goalkeeper Sebastian Garcia was also influential in the first half, successfully saving both of the Knights' shots on goal.
Once the second half began, the Cardinals wasted no time in attempting to gain the upper hand, with senior John Kissel's shot missing just wide of the goalpost.
In the 60th minute of the game, Garcia blocked a shot from Carleton senior forward Peter Passalino. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, only four seconds later the Knights would take the upper hand, as senior midfielder Riley Phelps slotted the ball inside the left side of the net, thanks to junior defender Stephen Baisch sending the ball across the box.
The Cardinals did everything in their power to overcome the deficit, with Garcia again denying Passalino a scoring opportunity with 65:18 on the clock.
The breakthrough the Cardinals had been looking for finally came about in the 78th minute, when senior defender Nate Donovan scored on a header following a cluster in the middle of the box, after a corner kick from junior forward Ryan O'Deen.
In the 81st minute, Garcia saved two goals within seven seconds of each other, further adding to his contributions in helping the Cardinals claw back from the deficit and send the game into overtime.
The Cardinals almost scored again via a header from freshmen forward Steven Abalos, but his shot was saved and the teams were left deadlocked 1-1 at the end of the first overtime.
The second overtime began with multiple scoring opportunities for the Cardinals, with Kissel sending a ball just high of the crossbar with 106th minute. Only a minute later, freshmen forwards Alexis Flores and Andreas Kristiansson had shots saved and blocked in quick succession, denying the Cardinals the opportunity to seal the victory in the dying minutes of the game.
The Cardinals have a short turnaround and return to the pitch at 5:00 P.M on Monday, September 5, when they face the University of Wisconsin-Platteville Pioneers. Live in game statistics and video can be accessed by clicking here.
