George Washington men’s soccer downs VCU 1-0 in OT
RICHMOND, Va. (Via George Washington Unversity) – The George Washington men’s soccer team posted its fifth shutout of the year, blanking Atlantic 10 rival VCU, 1-0, in overtime on Saturday evening at the Rams’ SportsBackers Stadium.
GW improves to 8-7-0 overall and moves to 4-2-0 in the A-10 with its first-ever victory over VCU.
Senior goalkeeper Jack Lopez matched his career high with six saves while posting his third shutout of the season, all in league play, and his second that lasted longer than 90 minutes.
The teams combined for 17 shots in the first half. VCU (4-8-4, 2-2-3 A-10) had several early chances, as Cody Sweatte got off a pair of shots in the 12th minute but was unable to find the back of the net. Minutes later, Brandon Eaton’s shot grazed the crossbar.
At the 25-minute mark, sophomore Koby Osei-Wusu fired a shot on goal, but VCU keeper Pierre Gardan made a great save. With just over two minutes left in the first half, VCU’s Greg Boehme’s header missed just high, and the game remained scoreless at the break.
The Colonials and Rams combined for 11 shots in the second half but were unable to break the deadlock, and the game went to overtime.
In the fourth minute of the extra session, junior Garrett Heine got the ball out wide and made a great play, but his cross was intercepted by a VCU defender. The ball, however, took a bad bounce off the defender’s foot and into the net for an own goal to give GW the 1-0 victory, snapping the Colonials’ brief two-game skid.
Each team took 14 shots in the game, and GW held a 5-3 advantage on corner kicks. Heine and senior Oliver De Thier each took a game-high four shots. Gardan recorded five saves for the Rams.
The Colonials return to action next Saturday, when they host A-10 rival Massachusetts for Senior Day. Kickoff from the GW Soccer Field on the Mount Vernon Campus is set for 1 p.m.
