EMORY, Va. – The Lynchburg College Men's Soccer Team (10-3-4, 6-2-3 ODAC) needed nearly 102 minutes of play, but finally escaped with a 1-0 victory over Emory & Henry College (4-10-3, 2-7-2 ODAC) Saturday evening at Fred Selfe Stadium. The match also served as Senior Day as six seniors playing in their final match were honored by the Wasps.
Lynchburg, which won the ODAC Championship last season and reached the NCAA Division III Playoffs, also solidified a home match in the quarterfinals of this year's ODAC Tournament with the win.
The two squads battled for 90 minutes with spurts of control going back and forth. Though the Hornets outshot the Wasps by a 16-13 margin during regulation, the shots on goal were nearly identical with E&H putting five shots on frame to LC's six.
In the first overtime, both teams had shots on goal, but the goalkeepers held strong to force the second extra period. Just 1:06 into the second overtime, Lynchburg's Jon Mackey settled a ball on the right side of the box and struck a fantastic shot to the back top 90 for the goal and the win. Mackey and teammate Fredy Flores lead all players with five shots in the contest.
The Hornets' goalkeeper, Cory Budka earned the shutout stopping six shots while Wasp junior Didier Grillet (Matthews, N.C.) had seven saves despite the loss.
Freshman midfielder Colin Foley (Chesapeake, Va.) had four shots including two on goal while senior defender Tim Coulter (Mooresville, N.C.) notched a trio of chances for Emory & Henry.
It marked the second time this season that Emory & Henry has fallen in double overtime to one of the top four teams in the ODAC. The Wasps also conclude the year with the best record in conference play since 2001, earning eight points for a pair of wins and two draws.
This year marks only the fourth time in program history that the Wasps have earned more than four points in the ODAC tables as the 2001 E&H team finished with a 3-5-1 record in league play.
Emory & Henry will now await the release of the 2015 All-ODAC Teams which will come after the conclusion of the ODAC Tournament next weekend.
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-photo courtesy of Caleb Johnston, E&H '15