McFadden Lifts Men's Soccer to 2-1 Double-Overtime Win at Saint A's
MANCHESTER, N.H – With 13 seconds remaining and both teams headed for a 1-1 draw, Merrimack men's soccer senior midfielder Matt McFadden (Manchester, N.H.) took a long pass from the keeper and found the back of the net in the final minute of the second overtime period, lifting the Warriors to a 2-1 sudden-death win over Saint Anselm in dramatic fashion on Wednesday afternoon in Manchester, N.H.
Winners of three straight – their longest streak of the season – the Warriors improve to 5-2-1 overall with a 3-2 record in Northeast-10 Conference action, while the Hawks stumble to 3-4-1 with a 3-1 mark in league play.
McFadden's marker – his first of the season – came at 109:47 of the second overtime session. With 13 seconds remaining, sophomore goalkeeper Jose Silva (Northborough, Mass.) managed to find McFadden downfield, and the senior managed to put one past Saint A's keeper Eric Moriarty (five saves) to clinch the victory.
The goal capped off a dramatic win that came after the Warriors squandered a 1-0 lead at the break. Junior midfielder Rafael Cabral (Woburn, Mass.) tallied an unassisted strike in the 25th minute to put the Warriors on top, 1-0, but Sean Smith evened the match in the 66th minute to draw the Hawks even at 1-1 with about 25 minutes remaining in the second half.
After neither team tickled the twine in the first 10-minute overtime session, the Warriors came out firing in the second and final sudden-death frame, holding a 5-2 lead in shot attempts. Both keepers had to record a save apiece in the first overtime before Moriarty made two more stops in the second session.
But McFadden capitalized in the closing moments of the game, sending the Warriors to a season-high three games over .500 while picking up two more valuable points in the NE-10 standings.
"What a tremendously played game from both sides," head coach Tony Martone said afterward. "Both teams had their chances to win, and we managed to get a fortunate bounce at the end of the game and [McFadden] came through when we needed someone to step up. I couldn't be more proud of our guys."
The Warriors held a slim 20-19 edge in shot attempts, while Silva recorded seven saves in net to earn his fifth victory of the season. Both teams mustered six corner kicks apiece and 25 combined fouls.
Next up, Merrimack continues its season-long three-game road trip with a conference tilt at Southern Connecticut on Sunday, Sept. 30, with first whistle set for 1 p.m.
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