Williamstown, MA—the Williams College men's soccer team was upset 2-1 in overtime to NESCAC and Little Three rival Wesleyan College Sunday afternoon in a NESCAC tournament quarterfinal match.
The Cardinals (8-7-0), who entered the game as the 7th seed in the tournament, scored the winning goal in the 94th minute of overtime. Evan Hazelett received a ball in the right side of the box and snuck a cross past keeper Peter Morrell, who was charging off his line, to Walter Rodriguez who scored the golden goal from point blank range on an open net.
The goal ended the Ephs (11-2-2) hopes of winning the NESCAC title for the second year in a row. The Ephs entered the match as the 2nd seed in the tournament and were ranked number 10 in the nation. However, this did not seem to phase the underdog Wesleyan Cardinals.
The Cardinals came out in the first half energized and ready to play. They controlled the midfield and limited the Ephs to only 3 shots. Wesleyan had their own opportunities in the first half including an open shot in the box from 10 yards out by Geoff Zartarian that was saved by Williams keeper Peter Morrell. Morrell had 2 saves on the day for the Ephs.
Despite outshooting the Cardinals 15 to 12, the Ephs had limited opportunities on the day. Their best chances came on a series of plays by forward Charlie Romero in the middle of the second half. Romero played a cross into the box that was just out of the reach of teammate User Kushaina. In addition, Romero had a shot on goal that bounced of the far post. The Ephs only goal on the day was an own goal by the Cardinals midfielder Roy O'Neil in the 42nd minute off a corner kick from Gordon Atkins. Wesleyan keeper Adam Purdy had 2 saves on the day for the Cardinals.
The Ephs took a 1-0 lead into halftime, and protected the lead with a strong defensive effort led by captain Joe Vella for most of the second half. However, in the 82nd minute Zach Dixon was able to score the equalizer. After a free kick cross into the box that was punched out by Peter Morrell, Dixon was able to corral the rebound and chip a ball over Morrell to tie the game and send the match to overtime.
This was the 8th overtime game played by the Ephs this year, a new NCAA DIII record. The previous record was held by Allegheny College who played 7 overtime games in 1996.
The win propels the Cardinals to the semifinals of the NESCAC tournament, which will be held next weekend at host Bowdoin College. The Ephs will now have to wait and hope for a bid to the NCAA tournament in order to continue their season.
