Brandon Laws scored the equalizer with under 2 minutes to play to cap off a frantic end to regulation time, but the Yellowjackets could not finish the rally as they battled to a thrilling 1-1 tie against the Ithaca College Bombers here in Fauver Stadium this evening. Rochester is now 5-2-1, Ithaca is 6-1-2.
The first half was a physical, defensive struggle, with both teams managing just 4 shots each. The second half started out much the same until the 69th minute. Forward Glen Palilla took a cross from right winger Benjamin Visnyei and headed it into the upper left corner of the net to give Ithaca the 1-0 advantage.
The final 20 minutes of regulation became very feisty and heated. Rochester would not steal the momentum until the the 87th minute. The Ithaca defense badly misplayed a back pass to the goalkeeper which nearly resulted in an own goal. Ithaca scrambled to keep the ball out of their net, clearing it past the back line. On the ensuing corner kick, midfielder Mike Springer shot it at net and it was cleared off the goal line by Ithaca defender Visnyei. Soon following, Rochester was awarded a throw in right in front of their own bench. The reserves cleared and moved the benches to make way for midfielder Gary Stom, who launched his signature flip-throw-in toward the Ithaca goal. After a scramble, the ball ended up in the goal mouth near the left goal post, where Damien Hallatt tipped it to Laws who tipped it into the open net for the equalizing goal at 88:11.
Neither of the teams could get anything going in the sudden-victory overtime periods. No one scored the golden goal, and the final score stayed tied at 1 after 110 minutes of action.
Rochester held a 17-10 shot advantage in this fiesty matchup, which featured 6 yellow cards. Ithaca goalkeeper Dave Corvi made 7 saves in net, while his Rochester counterpart Brian Minehan made 5 saves.
Rochester goes on the road next Tuesday to face Hobart before opening their University Athletic Association season October 4th at Brandeis. The next game in Fauver Stadium is Tuesday, October 7th, when the Yellowjackets face regional rival R.I.T. Game time is 7 p.m.
