Trinity And Wheaton Play To Exciting Men's Soccer Tie
Hartford, Conn. – The Trinity College Bantams and the visiting Wheaton College Lyons played to a 2-2 draw under a constant threat of a thunderstorm this afternoon in men's soccer action. Trinity moves to 5-3-4 and extends its winless streak to three games but snaps a two-game losing skid, while the Lyons are now 7-5-4 including a 0-12 mark in their last three games.
After nearly scoring on a early give-and-go from junior forward Christian Carrasquillo (Manchester, Conn.) to senior captain midfielder Anthony El-Hachem (Vernon, Conn.) back to Carrasquillo whose shot was saved by Lyon rookie goalie Matt Dickey (Newton, Mass.), the Bantams took 1-0 lead on a penalty kick by El-Hachem. Bantam first-year back David Pierce (Buffalo, N.Y.) was tackled in the box, and El-Hachem nailed the try to Dickey's right side 12:14 into the game. Carrasquillo gave Trinity a 2-0 lead in the 22nd minute with a low shot past Dickey from the right wing, converting on a feed by junior back Zachary Packer (North Attleboro, Mass.).
Wheaton sophomore forward Travis Blair (Hastings, N.Y.) was denied a chance for the first Lyon goal when Packer held him off just long enough for Trinity junior goalkeeper James Ciano (Syosset, N.Y.) to save the shot with his hand. Trinity came close to padding its lead several times late in the first half, beginning with a negated goal by junior captain back Shaun McGann (West Hartford, Conn.) due to an offside call. Bantam junior John El-Hachem (Vernon, Conn.) fired a shot from close on the right wing off the post in the 28thminute, and Carrasquillo forced Dickey to leave his feet to stop a shot from the far side during a Bantam corner kick moments later.
Leading, 2-0, after the break, Ciano dove to keep the Lyons off the board on a blast from the top of the box by Wheaton sophomore Brian Kenny (Mount Vernon, N.Y.) in the 56th minute. Wheaton tied the contest in the 67th minute when the ball squirted free from Ciano and Wheaton senior tri-captain forward Max Swanson (Lexington, Mass.) got off a cross to a streaking Blair who headed it into the net. After a lull of nearly 15 minutes, Carrasquillo shot just over the cross bar from five yards away for another Trinity near miss, and Blair did the same for Wheaton shortly afterwards from 28 yards out. With just under six minutes left in regulation, Trinity sophomore back Alex Perkins (Kingston, Jamaica) and Carrasquillo both sent crosses into empty space on the wings, but failed to find a teammate on each.
With 41 seconds left in regular time, Wheaton freshman midfielder Noah Kossoff (New York, N.Y.) tied the game at 2-2 with a close shot after a scrum had ensued during a Lyon corner kick. Wheaton sophomore midfielder Luke Finkelstein (Peabody, Mass.) was credited with an assist on the play. Trinity had one last offensive threat, but Dickey barely beat Trinity junior Will Stankiewicz (Townsend, Mass.) and first-year midfielder Josh LeBlanc (Manchester, Conn.) to loose balls in the right of the box at the 30-second mark.
Ciano preserved the tie once in each extra frame, leaping high to stop a hard shot from the left wing by Blair in the first overtime and barely getting his fingertips on a Blair shot from just outside the top of box that caromed off Lyon senior forward Will Nesbitt (Holliston, Mass.) to force the ball to hit the cross bar before saving the rebound in the second overtime. Wheaton outshot Trinity, 11-3, in extra time including an 8-1 edge in the second overtime. The teams combined for 45 shots overall with the Bantams holding a 25-20 edge. Ciano finished with seven saves and Dickey stopped four shots.
