Saturday, Nov. 2 Results
Wright State 2, Detroit 1 (ot)
Oakland 3, Green Bay 2
Valparaiso 1, Cleveland State 0
Wright State 2, Detroit 1 (ot)
DETROIT-- A golden goal by Eric Lynch with just over two minutes remaining in the first overtime gave the Wright State men's soccer team a 2-1 Horizon League win at Detroit Saturday afternoon. The loss eliminates UDM from postseason competition after earning the #1 seed in the Horizon League Tournament just last season.
Detroit (3-10-4, 0-6 Horizon League) had a chance to take an early lead in the match, after the Titans had three shots in the box from a pair of corner opportunities. A scramble for about two minutes ended in a goal, but senior captain Adam Bedell was called for offside and the score was negated.
Senior midfielder Derek Zuniga gave the Raiders a 1-0 lead at the 38:40 mark of the first half as he took a cross from junior midfielder Bryce Rockwell-Ashton and converted it for his first goal of the season. It was the third assist of the year for Rockwell-Ashton.
Coming out of the half, UDM was in control, getting chances to equalize the match and that's exactly what the Titans did. Bedell found Jason Leslie sprinting down the field, and Leslie knocked in his third goal of the season to level the match at one in the 62nd minute.
In the extra period, UDM left Brett Elder free on back left side as he sprinted towards the corner and sent a cross to Eric Lynch, who chipped it over Nathan Steinwascher for the golden goal.
Freshman goalkeeper Tyler Blackmer recorded seven saves on the day as both team attempted 17 shots, with WSU holding an 11-8 edge in shots on goal.
Officially eliminated from postseason competition, Detroit will compete in its final game of the 2013 season on Saturday, Nov. 9 in Indiana at Valparaiso.
With the win, Wright State (5-9-1) wraps up Horizon League play with a 3-4 record and has clinched a spot in the Horizon League Tournament that begins on Tuesday, November 12. The Raiders have two nonleague contests remaining, starting on Tuesday, November 5, with a makeup match at Kentucky starting at 7:00.
Oakland 3, Green Bay 2
GREEN BAY – Seniors Sabastian Xiong (Cottage Grove, Wis.) and Sam Krenzien (Wauwautosa, Wis.) both found the back of the net on their Senior Day at Aldo Santaga Stadium, but visiting Oakland (6-6-5, 4-2-1 HL) scored three first-half goals and stole a 3-2 victory at Green Bay (7-6-3, 2-3-1 HL) in Horizon League men’s soccer action on Saturday afternoon.
Oakland got on the board first in the eighth minute as Tinnion took a penalty kick that was originally saved by Green Bay's Kyle Ihn but was able to gather the rebound and put it in the back of the net.
Sean Magee would push the score to 2-0 as he took a shot from the left side from Chase Jabbori and beat the keeper toward the far post in the 20th minute. Four minutes later Shawn Claud Lawson would score his first goal of the season as he got a through ball from Tinnion and beat the keeper on a one-on-one to make the score 3-0.
Just 34 seconds after falling behind 3-0, Green Bay received a penalty kick of its own in the 25th minute. Xiong stepped up and took the kick, and his strike went past Oakland keeper Sean Lewis. Xiong improved to 3-for-3 on the season on penalty kicks with his fifth marker of his senior campaign.
After four combined goals in the opening 25 minutes, the next 59-plus minutes would feature scoreless action as Green bay remained in a 3-1 hole. In the 84th minute, Krenzien collected the ball above the box, dribbled into space and fired a beautiful shot with his left foot to beat Lewis. The goal was the 11th of the season for Krenzien to tie Milwaukee’s Laurie Bell for the Horizon League lead.
The Phoenix kept the pressure on looking for the equalizer in the final five minutes, but the Golden Grizzlies survived an onslaught of Green Bay pressure to claim the road victory.
The two teams each took 13 shots in the contest while Green Bay held a 5-3 advantage in corner kicks. Ihn stopped six shots in the net for the Phoenix while his counterpart Lewis made four stops.
Oakland has clinched a spot in the Horizon League Tournament and can officially finish as high as the No. 2 seed and as low as the No. 4 seed. If the Golden Grizzlies are the No. 2 seed they would get a bye to the semifinal round and travel to host UIC on Nov. 15. If OU is the No. 3 or 4 seeds, they would host a quarterfinal match at the OU Soccer Field on Nov. 12.
Valparaiso 1, Cleveland State 0
With less than four minutes remaining in the Crusaders’ match at Cleveland State, Charles Barden (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Linn-Mar) was able to convert from the spot to put the Crusaders a goal up on the Vikings. The Crusaders held onto the lead as time expired to earn their first Horizon League victory of the season and keep hope alive for a berth in the Horizon League championship.
In a match that seemed certain to go into extra time, Barden, the Crusader skipper, was brought down in the area by a Viking defender in the 87th minute of the match. With the game level at 0-0, Barden coolly stepped to the spot and converted his penalty to put the Crusaders up a goal to none. With little time remaining in the match, the Crusader men were able to stay organized defensively and keep the Vikings off the scoreboard. Barden’s goal, his fourth of the season, couldn’t have come at a better time, as the Crusaders needed the result to stay in the hunt for a birth in the Horizon League Championship.
The Crusaders return to action on Monday for a nonleague game with #24 Michigan. Live stats for the game will be available through ValpoAthletics.com. Valpo then enters its regular season finale with Detroit (3-10-4, 0-6-0 Horizon) needing a result, along with a Green Bay loss at UIC, to advance to the Horizon League Championship.
The Vikings will play their final game of the 2013 regular season as Cleveland State will travel to Milwaukee on Saturday (Nov. 9), with kickoff beginning at 8:00 p.m.
