No. 16 Men's Soccer advances to OAC Tournament Championship with 2-1 double overtime victory over Capital
By: Andrew Korba
| OAC Tournament |
ADA -- Senior Stephen Perkins scored the game winning goal in the 105th minute to lead the No. 16 Ohio Northern men's soccer team to a 2-1 win over Capital in the OAC Tournament Semifinals on a rainy Wednesday afternoon.
The Polar Bears improve to 17-3-0 on the season, while the Crusaders end their season at 9-8-3.
Northern, the top seed in the tournament, will now play second seed John Carroll on Saturday afternoon at 2 pm at Kerscher Stadium, in the OAC Tournament Championship.
The teams played to a 1-1 tie at the end of regulation.
In the second overtime, Northern was able to draw a foul.
Sophomore Chase Mueller stepped up from just inside of midfield and sent a ball towards the box.
Perkins was able to break free from his defender and headed the ball into the back of the net for the game winning goal.
"I am really proud of Stephen," said head coach Brent Ridenour. "He played all game and still had great energy. He has scored some huge goals for us all season."
The teams played a scoreless first half, with ONU having a 13-3 advantage in shots.
The Crusaders struck first in the second half, in the 67th minute.
Jacob Pulliam sent a corner kick into the box that was ruled a handball, which earned a penalty kick for Capital.
The Crusaders R.G. Florey stepped up and drilled home the penalty kick to put the Crusaders in front 1-0.
ONU came right back three minutes later.
Sophomore Keegan Ross controlled a ball and sent it to senior Jeremy Barnes.
Barnes flicked the ball to freshman Austin Horton who beat the keeper to tie the match at 1-1.
Freshman goalkeeper Evan Bader picked up the win to improve to 17-3-0 on the season.
Bob Weisgarber made seven saves for Capital and falls to 9-7-3.
Northern finished with 29 shots, with nine being on goal, while the Crusaders took eight shots with two being on goal.
The Polar Bears also held a 9-3 advantage in corner kicks.
"We were fortunate to get the win today," added Ridenour. "The Capital defense was great all day. We had many chances to score, but their defense stayed organized and made it very tough."
