Box Score
ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. - For 16 years, the Lebanon Valley College men's soccer program dreamed of defeating Elizabethtown College. With one shot Saturday night,
Jordan Auman made the dream a reality.
Auman netted the dramatic golden-goal winner in overtime to lift the Dutchmen, 2-1, and earn the first win over the Blue Jays in program history. LVC was 0-14-2 heading into the match.
The Dutchmen (5-5-0, 1-0-0 CC) sat on a 1-0 lead after
Travis Steedle put them ahead in the 22nd minute, but the Blue Jays (3-5-1, 0-1-0 CC) leveled on Dan Featherer's goal in the 74th minute.
"Right now I'm just so proud of these guys," said Head Coach
Charlie Grimes, a 1997 graduate of Elizabethtown. "I can not say enough of the effort that our boys put forth, and I'm overwhelmed. I'm so proud."
Elizabethtown had won four in a row in the series, and LVC had only managed two ties dating back to 1993, a 1-1 draw in 2002 and a scoreless game in 2004, both at Herbert Field.
LVC controlled the tempo in the first half, and went ahead when Steedle struck a screamer from the top of the box. E-town, however, came out of the break hunting for the equalizer, and appeared to have it 10 minutes into the half before the goal was called off by the linesman.
The Dutchmen countered, searching for an insurance goal, and nearly had it moments later when
Chris Hall forced a sensational fingertip save by Jeff Mullen.
The game took a scary turn in the 66th minute, however, when E-town's Bryan Holt collided at midfield with an LVC player and had to be stretchered off. After a nearly 20-minute stoppage for the injury, both teams faced a 24-minute race to the end of regulation.
"We knew it was going to change the game - it was like starting from scratch," Grimes said. "We knew it was going to be challenging."
The Blue Jays appeared inspired and finally found the equalizer when Featherer blasted a shot from 30 yards out that hit the inside of the post and went in.
In overtime, LVC won possession early, and Auman launched a ball out of a scramble that glanced off Mullen's fingertips and in just 34 seconds into the extra stanza.
Tim Mehl made four saves, as did his counterpart Mullen. LVC controlled shots (14-9) while E-town led in corners (5-4). The gritty, hard-fought game saw 40 fouls and six yellow cards.
LVC heads back to work Wednesday, hosting Misericordia University.
