The Fordham Rams defeated the Davidson Wildcats 3-2 on Sunday in overtime at Jack Coffey Field, propelling the Rams (6-5-3, 3-1-1 Atlantic 10) to their third straight A-10 conference victory of the season.
Early into overtime, it looked like Davidson (3-11-1, 1-4-1) had come out on top. After Joe Creel kicked a ball past goalkeeper Jordan Black to score, the Wildcats were whistled offside and the winning goal was disallowed for a foul in the box.
Just a minute after the reversal, Fordham found themselves driving down the field. In a battle for the ball, freshman forward Dantae Greer beat his defender to the top of the Wildcat box, where he was dragged down and awarded a penalty kick.
Called on for the second time in the match, Jannik Loebe stepped up in front of Davidson goalkeeper Andrew Kenneson and netted another penalty shot under pressure, this one earning his team an overtime win.
Scoring got underway early in the match when Creel put the Wildcats ahead 1-0 in the 15th minute. On a pass from Cort Coxhead, Creel made his way to the front of the Fordham net to put one in from the penalty spot to tally his second goal of the season.
Ten minutes later, the Rams got themselves on the board. Off a penalty shot coming courtesy of a Davidson handball, Loebe scored his third goal of the season and tied the game at 1-1.
The tie wouldn’t last for long as Davidson retook the lead. Stemming from a throw-in which found its way off the head of a Rams defender, Christian Fechter saw the clear attempt floating vulnerably in the air and one-timed a rocket into the back of the net.
Showing resiliency, Fordham tied the game once again just before the half. A cross off the foot of defender Christopher Bazzini to the far post allowed fellow defenseman Matthew Lewis the chance to head his third goal of the year and tie things up at 2-2.
After a high-scoring first half of action, the second was just the opposite. Through 45 minutes of play, neither team could net the go-ahead goal and the match advanced to extra time.
Black’s six saves were enough to keep the Rams in contention and awarded him his first career victory in net.
Davidson is back in action on Saturday when it hosts VCU on its Senior Night. Fordham looks to make it four straight victories in the A-10 when it travels to Saint Louis on Saturday.
Saint Louis routes St. Bonaventure 5-0, stays perfect in A-10
Four second half goals lead Billikens to easy victory
After a tight 45 minutes, the Saint Louis Billikens put up four second-half goals and defeated Saint Bonaventure 5-0 on Saturday night.
The win for the Billikens (7-4-3, 6-0-0 A-10) maintains their perfect record in this year’s conference play and brings them one win closer to clinching the top seed in the conference tournament.
In the fleeting moments of the first half, Saint Louis netted the only goal it would need. With just five seconds left before the break, Akeem Richards was able to get off a shot and find the back of the Bonnies (4-10-2, 3-3-1 A-10) net off assists from Constantin Heider and Max Karcher.
Richards’ first tally of the season would eventually prove to be the game-winner.
In the second half, the Billikens added more than enough insurance to their lead.
In the 68th minute, Joe Saad put his team ahead 2-0 with a goal on an assist from Jair Minors.
Through a stretch of just five minutes, from the 78th to the 83rd, Saint Louis scored three quick goals and finalized their victory.
Although never having to make a save throughout the entire game, Billiken goalkeeper Ben Yeager earned his third shutout of the year.
Saint Louis goes up against non-conference opponent Indiana on Tuesday in Bloomington. Saint Bonaventure goes out of the conference as well with a trip to New Jersey to face NJIT on Saturday.
Liam Flaherty can be reached at [email protected].
