FULTON, Mo.—Playing in its third straight overtime game, the William Woods University men's soccer team earned a much needed victory on Saturday afternoon, as the Owls defeated Williams Baptist College, 2-1 (2OT).
This was a fast paced and physical matchup from start-to-finish, between the Owls (8-4-3; 4-2-3 AMC) and the Eagles (5-6-1; 2-5-1 AMC), as a combined 53 shots were taken, while 37 fouls were committed.
Things started out well for the Owls, as after a defensive stop and a pass up to
Harrison Bray, the sophomore midfielder passed a great ball up and over the Eagles defense for
Anthony Moscatello.
The speedy forward, from Algonquin, Illinois, got to the ball before WBC goalie, Javier Piedra, tipped it past him and then kicked the ball into the back of the net, giving WWU a 1-0 advantage just 16:00 minutes in.
Williams Baptist College, tried to score the equalizer throughout the half, but Owls goalie
Bridger Pretz, who is filling in for the injured
Conor Cable, was impressive in his second start on the season, making eight saves in the first half, to keep WBC scoreless.
In the second half, both teams' continued its offensive push, but neither squad could find the back of the net early in the first half, with both Piedra and Pretz standing tall in net.
In the 68
th minute, however, the Eagles finally broke through, as after a WWU foul, WBC was awarded a free kick just outside the 18 yard box. Diego Santillan, was able to get his shot through the wall and past Pretz, making it a brand new game at 1-1.
After the goal, the physical play continued, as both teams' who came into the game needing a win, did whatever they could to net the game winner.
A key moment in the game happened in the 74
th minute, as Bruno Campos got behind the Owls defense and around Pretz with a chance to score the game winner with a wide open net, but as the ball rolled near the net, out of nowhere,
Jordan Henderson slid in and blocked the shot, ending the threat for WBC.
The Owls had a chance of its own in the 87
th minute, as returning from injury,
Rodrigo Alves got the ball away from the WBC defense and had a chance for goal, but Piedra again came up with the big save, which kept the game tied 1-1.
Pretz, meanwhile, had to come up with two huge saves of his own in the 89
th minute, as Luiz Baulhouth and Thiago Sooma had their chances stopped by the junior net-minder. After a combined 44 shots on goal and 90:00 minutes of play, the score was tied at 1-1, so it was off to overtime again for the Owls.
In the first OT, the Owls dominated, having a shot advantage of 4-1, as
Joe Lewis,
Rhys Wallace,
Julian Wells and
Ryan Howell all had chances to send the home crowd happy, but neither found the back of the net, so another 10:00 minutes of play was needed.
In the second overtime, William Woods, again outshot and outplayed WBC, but time was running out and the team needed three points in the AMC standings.
When it looked as the game was headed towards another tie for WWU, with stout goaltending and defense on both sides,
Juan Roman changed that for the Owls.
The Santa Cruz, Bolivia, native, picked a perfect time to net his first collegiate goal, as he received the ball from 25 yards out and blasted his shot to the near post and into the back of the net, past a diving Pierda, which erupted the WWU bench and its fans, as the Owls picked up a hard fought 2-1 victory over Williams Baptist College.
WWU, totaled 23 shots in the outing, and were led by Bray having five, with three shots on net. Alves and Moscatello totaled three shots each, while
Brett Hodges,
Lendell Louis-Jacques,
Rhys Wallace and Roman totaled two.
In net, Pretz, picked up his first win as an Owl, making a season-high 13 saves in just over 108:00 minutes of action.
With the regular season coming down to an end, the final two conference games are important ones for WWU and they will look to gather three more points on Wednesday night, as they host Lindenwood University-Belleville, who are right behind them in the AMC standings. Kick-off will start at 5 p.m.
Fans make sure to stay updated on wwuowls.com on Tuesday afternoon for a full preview of the game against the Lynx.
