Men's Strikers Win in Soccer Quarter-Finals

[asu66]

From CofCSports.com

MT. PLEASANT, S.C. – The College of Charleston men’s soccer team fell, 2-1, to Appalachian State and was eliminated from the Southern Conference Tournament on Saturday afternoon at Patriots Point. The Cougars led for the majority of the match but the Mountaineers scored two late goals separated by 1:16 of game clock to escape with the victory.

“We controlled a lot of the play today but we needed another goal,” said head coach Ralph Lundy. “In the second half we needed another goal and their keeper made an incredible save on a shot by Ralphie [Lundy] which gave them some momentum and got them back in the game. What they were doing wasn’t exactly pretty, but they got corners; they got throw-ins; they gained momentum; they gained territory and they got the goals. Out effort was great, it wasn’t as if we didn’t have the effort. It’s just a cruel game sometimes.”

The third-seeded Cougars (8-10-1) produced a 15-11 shot advantage and 10-6 corner-kick edge while putting eight shots on goal.

Appalachian State (8-7-3), the tournament’s six seed, advances to the semifinals to be played in Cary, N.C., at the WakeMed Soccer Complex on Thursday, Nov. 8.

The Cougars got on the board in the 15th minute when Robbie Benson (Rock Hill, S.C.) sent a long throw-in into the box where a Mountaineer got his head to it but caught the ball on the wrong spot and it redirected into his own net.

The Cougars stayed aggressive and on the attack while seeking an insurance marker for the rest of the first half but would settle for the 1-0 lead at the intermission after outshooting the Apps 9-4 in the opening period.

CofC continued to apply pressure in the second half, but the tide of the match turned quickly when CofC allowed the Mountaineers to counter attack in the 76th minute. Matthew Melton took the ball down the right side of the field in transition and sent a long cross into the box where Josiah Trower redirected it into the net on a header.

Just after the ensuing kickoff, ASU recollected the ball around the top of the penalty area and Stanley Broaden found Boubacar Toure slashing through the left side of the box and Toure scored to the lower right corner to suddenly put the Apps up 2-1.

The Cougars repeatedly threatened for the equalizer down the stretch but it ultimately evaded them as time inevitable expired on the match.

The Cougars were led in shots by senior captain Shawn Ferguson (Rock Hill, S.C.) who took four attempts. Kees Heemskerk (Zaandam, Netherlands) made four saves.

[hapapp]

Congrats to MSOC!

[T-Dog]

#7 Wofford upset #2 Furman so we got a great shot to make the finals. The Apps won 2-1 in the regular season in Sparkle City. App fans in Cary should make it to WakeMed Park on Thursday.

[appmaj]

Match in the second OT right now

Watch for free

http://www.soconsports.com/mediaPortal/ ... EM_ID=4000&

[skjellyfetti]

Wofford misses their first PK. App drains theirs. Looking good.

[appmaj]

App
0-0-X-X-
Wofford
X-0-0-0-0

Wofford wins

[hapapp]

Some really poor PKs from ASU. Doesn't look like they practice them.

[skjellyfetti]

I doubt they practice them that often. They don't have to kick them all year. I would expect they practiced them some leading up to SoCon tourney... but, still...

Tough way to end the season.

And, how typical is it for an English footballer to choke on a penalty kick.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/euro20 ... story.html

[DoubleA]

We should have put the game away in regulation. Outshot and out possessed them, but came up short in the most important statistic - balls in the back of the net.