No. 1 Men's Soccer Ties Mercy in 2013 Home Finale, 2-2
Box Score
BROOKVILLE, N.Y. (Oct. 26, 2013) - Trailing 2-0 with just over 16 minutes to go in regulation, the No. 1 LIU Post men's soccer team scored a pair of goals over a nine-plus minute span to send the game into extra time, and settled for a 2-2 tie versus Mercy Saturday in Brookville, N.Y.
The Mavericks (9-3-3, 3-2-2 ECC) jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead only 4:43 into the opening stanza. Junior midfielder Chuong Tran (West Nyack, N.Y.) dribbled around a defender, and beat Pioneers' (14-1-1, 7-0-1 ECC) senior keeper Marco Jorgensen (Copenhagen, Denmark), who had four saves, inside the left post.
Soon after, junior midfielder Danny Leon, Jr. (Flushing, N.Y.) had a golden opportunity to double Mercy's advantage. Yet, his shot struck off the crossbar. Junior forward Eivind Austboe (Stavanger, Norway) subsequently tried to retaliate, but the LIU Post's leading scorer's game-tying attempt was turned aside by the visitors' Nick Papas (Castleton, N.Y.). Papas knocked away a game-best eight shots.
The Mavericks would bring that one-goal cushion into halftime, and take little time to extend their lead in the second half. Only 4:59 into the period, a Luis Perez (Jackson Heights, N.Y.) cross-pass was headed home by Ransmond Aboagye (Bronx, N.Y.), which widened the margin to 2-0.
The remaining time continued to dwindle, until a key yellow card reversed the Pioneers' fortunes. A hard foul outside the 18-yard box with 16:05 left by Gabriel Luna (Watsonville, Calif.) led to an Austboe shot that curved around a defensive wall, and inside the right post, cutting the deficit in half.
Then, in the 84th minute, freshman forward Johann Kristjansson (Reykjavik, Iceland) drilled a Cemil Turan (Staten Island, N.Y.) pass into the left-side netting for the equalizer. That would send the contest into overtime, where neither squad was able to secure the sudden victory between the pair of 10-minute sessions. As a result, LIU Post and Mercy finished in a 2-2 deadlock.
Overall, the Pioneers owned a commanding 28-9 advantage in shots, and an 8-3 edge in corner kicks.
Head Coach Andreas Lindberg and his LIU Post squad now conclude the regular season on a short two-game road trip, starting Wednesday (Oct. 30) at UDC. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m.