After a deadlocked 110 minutes, the New York University men's soccer team defeated Haverford College 5-4 in penalty kicks and will advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The first-round matchup was held on Saturday night, November 10, at Montclair State University oin Montclair, NJ.
The matchup between the Violets (12-4-2) and the Fords (14-4-1) finally ended when NYU's
Isaiah Boyd (Charlotte, NC/Mallard Creek) made his penalty kick in the seventh round and Haverford's Noah Schwab was denied by Violets' goalkeeper
Grant Engel (New York, NY/The Birch Wathen Lenox School).
"Just an amazing game and a gritty comeback by our team," said Head Coach
Kim Wyant.
Haverford's Max Krieg had scored the game's first goal, blasting one from well outside the box on the right side early in the second half (52:07).
Following Krieg's goal, the Violets pushed the play looking for scoring opportunities.
Oliver Kleban (Denver, CO/Blind Brook) got off a clean shot from just inside the box in the 64
th minute which was grabbed by Haverford's goalkeeper Michael Iacono. Kleban had another opportunity from close in just three minutes later, but was again denied. Then, in the 76
th minute, Kleban saw another attempt stopped by Iacono.
But, with time running out in the game and season for NYU,
Sergio Monton (Madrid, Spain/Fundacion Fomento) came up with the equalizer, scoring with less than three minutes remaining in the second half (87:55). His shot from approximately 28 yards out eluded Iacono into the upper left corner of the net.
"Just a great shot by Sergio," Wyant offered.
In the first overtime, both Monton and Kleban put shots on net, while Haverford did not manage a single shot on goal.
The Fords had the better of play in the second overtime, forcing Engel to make three saves while the Violets were unable to put a shot on net.
Then, with the season on the line, the Violets were able to extend their campaign by managing one more successful penalty kick than their opponent.
"The persistence we showed in getting that tying goal and then being able to outscore them in penalty kicks says a lot about our team and our program," Wyant said. "This was really exciting and now we get to play on."
The Violets will face host Montclair State at 7:00pm on Sunday night as their march in the 2018 NCAA Tournament continues.
