Box Score Photo Taken By: Jake Ryan
NEWBERG, Ore. --- It was a cold and chilly Friday night for the men's soccer team, but that didn't slow them down, as they hosted the Bearcats of Willamette University in a thrilling double-overtime 3-3 tie.
Recap:
The Bearcats were the first to draw blood, scoring in the 31st minute from a cross to Liam Main, who found the back of the net with a well struck ball. The Bruins rallied, though, and six minutes later netted the equalizer after Jose Becerra found Trevor Martin, who whipped one in for his second goal of the season.
Both teams went into the half knotted up at, 1-1.
In the 67th minute, Bruin' Victor Garcia found Miguel Lopez, who made a dashing run into the box and scored his third goal of the season, and a leg up on the Bearcats, 2-1. The next minute was something that rarely ever happens in soccer. The Bearcats managed to score a goal in the 68th minute, answering the Bruins, and again 25 seconds later to take a 3-2 advantage. Before the Bruins had a chance to blink, the Bearcats found themselves up with a one goal advantage and 21 minutes left in the game.
Clawing back, the Bruins forced shot after shot to try to find an equalizer to push the game into overtime. With just under a minute left in the game, Lopez hit a perfect ball that was just out of reach for Bearcat' goalie Josh Fuentes to keep the Bruins hopes alive and force an overtime.
Although both teams were competitive in both OTs, neither team could find the back of the net, resulting in a draw.
Top Performers:
Lopez was the hero in the match, recording three shots all on goal and two goals. The Bearcats managed to out-shoot the Bruins 34-19, but it was the Bruins who held a higher ratio of shots on goal. Ricardo Sotelo played all 110 minutes for the Bruins and recorded 10 saves, which is a new career-high for the junior.
What It Means:
The Bruins are still in fourth in the Northwest Conference with a record of 6-8-2 and 3-5-2 in conference play.
What Comes Next:
The Bruins will head to Linfield on Sunday, October 25 at 2:30 p.m. to try to create some separation from the 'Cats in the NWC standings.
