The men’s soccer team (4-4, 3-2 NESCAC) took to the road this past weekend attempting to show themselves and the White Mules of Colby (3-3-2, 1-3-1 NESCAC) that their offense is just as capable as any in the league. They proved their point by coming away with a 3-2 overtime victory.
Coming into the heated contest, the Cardinals had notched only four goals in seven games and had been relying heavily on stellar defense to keep them in the battle for a NESCAC title. The scoring drought came to an end early in the first half as Evan Berding ’05 banged the ball home on a pass from Brandon Smith ’08 in the 12 minute. Hoping to keep the offense moving in the right direction, the men continued to press for another goal, but instead Colby scored a quick equalizer in the 22 minute on a throw-in.
“We knew we were a superior team, but coach had warned us in advance that their set plays were pretty good and they beat us on a throw-in,” said Josh Stephens ’07. After the goal, the men seemed fatigued as the game turned sloppy and stayed that way until the half.
The team came out with more energy in the second period, feeling some pressure to score the first goal of the half in order to control the momentum. Both teams played more aggressively and the game turned physical. Chris Brown ’07, who had two assists in the game, beat two defenders and ripped a shot that was deflected to Smith, who once again added to the offense giving Wesleyan a 2-1 lead in the 57 minute.
After the Wesleyan goal, the game turned shoddy again, with the Colby fans heckling and the two teams scuffling on the field. The game got out of control when the referee did not stop play while trying to break up two fighting players at midfield. As many men on both teams watched the fray, a Colby player was able to slip through the defense and notch the tying goal with only 12 minutes remaining in regulation.
With the game destined for overtime, the stage was set for Smith to demonstrate that the Wesleyan freshman class is ready to play with any team in the NESCAC. Three minutes into overtime, a series of headers left the ball on Smith’s foot. As had been the norm for him on the day, Smith did not miss his mark as he scored the game-winner for the Cardinals.
While the men celebrated their victory, the Colby team still had unsettled aggression towards the Cardinals as they harassed the victorious men of Wesleyan.
“They necessitated some muscle,” said Chris Keeler ’07. “It was very physical and fortunately, because of our true superiority of strength, as shown by such muscular superman as Evan Bissell ’05 and Hooter (Peter Glidden ’07), we were ready to duke it out until the finish and come out on top.”
The win was made better by the fact that Colby had entered the game on a five-game winning streak only to lose to Wesleyan in NESCAC play. The Cardinals will journey to Maine again next weekend to take on Bates in another NESCAC contest.
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