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The Northeastern men's soccer team fell in an overtime thriller to No. 11 William & Mary.
The Huskies dominated the game statistically, but couldn't get the better of the Tribe after topping them 16-10 in shots and 10-1 in corner kicks.
“We should still be playing next week. It's a let down to our seniors. We didn't defend like we should have and as the game went on we became tired and began making mental mistakes” said head coach
Brian Ainscough.
With senior day and a possible playoff berth on the line, the Huskies came out aggressive looking to give their fans a victory in their final game of the season.
Seven minutes in to the game, sophomore
Don Anding beat the defense and with an open look at net launched a shot that was deflected over the net by William & Mary's Andrew McAdams.
Immediately following the drive, freshman
Dante Marini had a chance at a score in the 9th minute, but was denied once again by McAdams.
In the game's 24th minute Anding went down with a leg injury after becoming tangled up with several of the Tribe's defenders.
Junior
Mike Kennedy relieved Anding, and in the 35th minute scored on a
Nick Lueders pass in front of the net to beat the keeper. Kennedy came up limping after the score, and would not return in the game due to a hamstring injury.
Four minutes after the Huskies goal, the Tribe evened the game with a goal from Nathaniel Baako. The goal was set up by a corner kick, which led to a loose ball in the box and off of a Nicholas Abrigo pass Baako was able to beat Blum in net.
The Huskies dominated the first half outshooting the Tribe 7-1, however both teams went in to the locker room tied up.
Coming out in the second half, the Tribe looked like a different team in the sense that their original strategy to play defense had changed to putting points on the board and beating the Huskies on the attack.
In the 53rd minute the Tribe's Ben Coffey beat the Huskies defense and lofted a shot over Blum's head.
Brendan Ennis made a spectacular play on the ball and was able to head the ball off the cross bar, preventing a score and was immediately able to clear the ball from the box.
“Brendan is real tough. He gets no accolades, but he's our unsung hero,” said Ainscough.
The second half was constant checkmate, as neither team was able to get the better of the opposing defense, and the second half concluded with both teams taking five shots in the half.
Five minutes in to the overtime, off of a throw in, Alan Koger ripped a shot from the top right corner of the box that beat Blum in net and ultimately led to the defeat of the Huskies.
Northeastern finished the season at 9-5-3, while William & Mary sits at 13-3-2 and will host the CAA Tournament as conferences top team.
Today's game seemed to tell the story of the way the season has gone for the Huskies, “It's just another game where we have gone against somebody who's supposed to be a top team and when you look at the stats, there was only one team out there. We just lacked the quality to finish all season,” said Ainscough.
This was the last game for seniors
Nick Lueders,
Matt Sanford,
Santiago Bedoya,
Brendan Ennis,
Michael Davis and
Jordan Barbach.
Lueders went out with a bang after wreaking havoc on the Tribe's defense all game and leading the Huskies with seven shots.
Sanford, Ennis and Bedoya put in a great game on defense, leaving it all on the line in their effort to make their final home game a victorious one.
“The three defensemen will be surely missed. They are tremendous players who have brought nothing but opportunity and leadership to the program,” said Ainscough.
Northeastern concludes its 2010 campaign at 5-9-3 overall and 3-5-3 in conference play.
Fans can watch a replay of tonight's match, and all Huskies' home events, on
GoNU.TV.