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WILLIAMSTOWN, MA - No. 14 Williams men's soccer drew Trinity at home today 1-1 in a physical affair at Renzie Lamb field. The Ephs fell behind with 12 minutes to play, but tied the game on a goal with three minutes remaining from sophomore striker Dan Lima. It was a physical game, as the teams combined for 34 fouls. The Ephs outshot the Bantams 18-6 on the game, holding their opponents to only two shots in the second half and two overtimes.
The Ephs are now 2-0-1 overall and in the NESCAC, while the Bantams stand at 0-1-2 overall and 0-0-2 in the NESCAC.
"I give Trinity credit – they battled hard, and although they might not have created as many chances as we did, they hung in there and could have won the game," said Eph Head Coach Mike Russo. "Their midfield in particular played very well – No. 6 Joe Buckley and No. 10 Anthony El-Hachem played the whole game and did what they had to do. I was disappointed, because we had numbers in the midfield but didn't control the play there."
The game was physical from the outset, as the teams combined for 11 fouls in the first half. Williams outshot Trinity 6-4, and created several other opportunities, as senior captain Nick Pugliese's vision and sophomore User Kushaina's speed on the left wing in particular caused the Bantams problems. Trinity was able to create several chances of their own, earning four corner kicks in the half. Sophomore goalkeeper Pete Morrell had one save in the half, sprawling to stop a Trinity volley from the top of the box off of a corner kick in the 26th minute. Neither team was ultimately able to score in the half, and the teams entered the break tied 0-0.
Immediately after the second half began, Williams created pressure. In the 47th minute, senior striker Dan Morrisroe received the ball at the top left of the box, turned, and ripped a shot at the top left corner of the Trinity goal. Morrisroe's strike could not make it past Trinity goalkeeper Grant Schonberg, though, as Schonberg flew into the the upper 90 and tipped the ball into the cross bar before his defender cleared it away.
The Ephs controlled the play throughout the next 20 minutes of the half, opening the half with six consecutive shots before Trinity had an opportunity off a free kick in the 63rd minute. Trinity was then able to regain its foothold in the game, as the next ten minutes saw both teams go back-and-forth without creating a shot.
Then in the 78th minute, Trinity broke the tie. A ball played from midfield made it over the heads of the Williams center-backs, and the attempted clear from Williams right back Phil Vestergaard came to the right side of the box. Morrel and two Williams players surrounded the ball, but Trinity striker Christopher Binnie beat them to the ball. He slotted the ball across the goal to Zachary Packer, who passed the ball into the back of the Williams net to make the score 1-0 with less than 12 minutes to play.
"Trinity's goal was a communication error," said Russo. "It was their only shot inside the box, which is just frustrating."
The Ephs then switched from a 4-5-1 to a 3-4-3 to generate more pressure on the Bantams. The change paid off in the 87th minute. Doug Weinrib took a throw from the right-hand side of the Trinity 18-yard box. Schonberg came out to meet the throw at the corner of the 6-yard box, but was only able to deflect the ball. Lima then ran onto the ball in the center of the six and volleyed it off of a Trinity defender and into the back of the net.
The Ephs then had a chance to end the game with less than 30 seconds to play. A beautiful build-up through the midfield allowed Pugliese to get open with space in the box. However, Pugliese's strike was directly at Schonberg, who made the save, and the teams went into over time with the score tied 1-1.
Neither team was able to take control of the first overtime. There were calls from Trinity for a penalty in the 97th minute, as striker Dan Mayernick was tripped in the box on a breakaway after the ball was tackled away, but the play went for a corner. Williams' best opportunities came in the following three minutes off of two Weinrib throws, but the Ephs were unable to find the back of the net. Neither team was able to create a significant opportunity in the second overtime, and the game ended in a draw.
"I am not a big fan of tying, especially when we outshot the opponent 18-6," said Russo. "The problem was that we didn't put their keeper on the ground enough – we didn't make him dive, we hit everything right at him," said Russo. "Nicky [Pugliese] had a great chance at the end of the game that he hit right at the keeper. We were not quite composed enough in our shooting chances."
"It is too early to be concerned about NESCAC," continued Russo. "The NESCAC is extremely tough – for example, Colby beat Middlebury today [1-0 in overtime]. Every time you step on the field there's a very good opponent."
Williams will travel to Middletown, CT. next Saturday to take on the Wesleyan Cardinals at 1:30 p.m. The team will then face Bowdoin at home on Sunday, also at 1:30 p.m.
