On Saturday afternoon, the men’s soccer team battled Bowdoin for 110 minutes before the teams settled for a scoreless tie. The home game featured excellent defense, a waved-off Wesleyan goal, three yellow cards, and questionable calls by the referees. Frustrating at times, the match was hard fought on both sides, sometimes escalating to after-whistle shoves. At the end of the fiery bout, the Cardinals still stood undefeated, with their sixth shutout under their belts and a 6-0-3 overall record.

The first half saw four shots by the Cards and three by the Polar Bears. The shots remained close throughout the match, though Bowdoin ended with a 14-12 advantage, adding two in the second overtime to Wesleyan’s none.

Bowdoin had a chance to score early, with a header from the middle of the box, but keeper Adam Purdy ’13 stole the ball for one of his six saves of the game. A few minutes into the second half, Wesleyan went on a shooting rampage, but unfortunately was unable to convert any of the three chances into a goal. Austin Woolridge ’11 caught Bowdoin keeper Dan Hicks out of position and shot the ball into what seemed to be an open net, but a Polar Bear defender at the goal line was able to keep the ball out. The rebound went to tri-captain Nick Whipple ’09, but the reinstated Hicks blocked his shot. Walter Rodriguez ’13 had the final chance, but his attempt went over the net. This fury brought the home crowd to its feet, but in the end the scoreboard remained empty.

Later in the half, it looked as if Wesleyan had taken the lead, but in the midst of the celebrations, the officials called off the goal. According to Rory O’Neill ’13, who was directly involved in the play, both he and Hicks went for the ball in midair. Hicks subsequently dropped the ball, leading to the Wesleyan tally. O’Neill says that he simply jumped for the ball, never actually touching it or the goaltender. The linesman, however, saw otherwise and claimed that O’Neill had fouled Hicks, relaying his thoughts to the referee. When O’Neill asked about the play, the ref replied that he was only going by what he was told by the linesman.

This seemed to be just the beginning of a series of controversial calls made by the officials, including an absent penalty kick that should have been awarded to the Cards in the second overtime. This frustration, combined with the physical nature of the match up, led to some animosity, as players exchanged both words and shoves. These altercations did not amount to anything serious, but instead spoke of the mood on the field. Despite such intensity, the Cards expected a better outcome.

“We knew they would take the game to us with their physicality, and although we dealt with it well at times, being more clinical would have [gotten] us the ‘W’,” wrote Noah Schlesinger ’13 in an e-mail to the Argus.

At the end of the day, Wesleyan accepted the tie, making its NESCAC record 3-0-2.

“The Bowdoin game was a real battle, [and] I was proud of how the defense held up to the barrage of long balls from the Polar Bears,” said head coach Geoff Wheeler. “They are a difficult team to play and although we were disappointed, we didn’t win the game, we refused to give anything away.”

On Sunday, the Cards took sole ownership over the top of the NESCAC standings. Wesleyan had previously shared the spot with Williams, but the Ephs lost to Trinity 3-0, falling into a second-place tie with the Bantams.

Only one more regular-season home game remains for the Cardinals. The men will be on the road for the last three matches of the season, all against NESCAC rivals.

“We have to make the most of our last home game,” Purdy said. “With the away games, it is always tough to go and play on another team’s field. We have
handled away games well this season and we have to continue that in
[the last] three games.”

Up next is an away game at Western Connecticut State University on Wednesday. The final home game will take place this Saturday against Bates before the road trips commence starting Sunday at Middlebury.