For the first time since 2012, the men’s soccer team earned the title of Patriot League Champions. After a game that could have been a part of a movie, the six-seeded Leopards claimed victory over two-seeded Lehigh University in penalty kicks.
The win on Saturday at Ulrich Sports Complex gave head coach Dennis Bohn his fourth Patriot League title, and the Leopards (3-2-4 Patriot League, 8-6-7 overall) their eighth.
“I’m just so proud of these guys,” Bohn said. “It’s been weeks and weeks and weeks now, this team has been gelling, and I think the last 13 games show that we deserve and earned this championship.”
The game began with a Maroon and White kickoff that rolled into three minutes of possession. Over the next nine minutes, there was little action as both teams played on their heels. After sophomore midfielder Cade Maglione drew a foul at the top of the box, the Leopards were presented with their first scoring opportunity, but junior midfielder Samir Dishnica’s free kick sailed left.
While the Mountain Hawks (5-1-3 Patriot League, 9-5-6 overall) gained some momentum on offense to close out the half, the Leopard defense stood tall every time, stopping any attack the hosts brought their way.
It only took two minutes out of the half for Lehigh to break the scoring drought, as a crossing ball from the right side found the head of a Mountain Hawk, who knocked it in over senior goalkeeper Eric Axtman to take a 1-0 lead.
The Maroon and White looked to break the Mountain Hawks’ back line throughout the period, registering 10 shot attempts in the second period, the first nine of which were fruitless for the visitors.
“I think it was just the team talk,” sophomore forward Riley Martin said of the team staying aggressive. “Getting us fired up and back on our game because even though we went down one-nil early, we were like, ‘You know what, we still got it.’”
Everything changed in the 87th minute. Sophomore defender Jackson Vajda threw the ball into the opponent’s box, where senior defender Nicholas Liebich rocketed a shot that banged off the right post. The ball fell into the feet of sophomore forward Gabe Faust, whose quick shot was deflected by the Mountain Hawk goalkeeper.
There seemed to be magnets connected to the Leopard’s feet, as the deflected ball landed right in front of freshman forward Nicolas Papadopoulas, who sent another blocked shot towards the goal. The Mountain Hawks looked to clear the ball, but the boot ricocheted off of Vajda’s heel and floated in over the goalkeeper’s head as the cardiac Leopards knotted the match at 1-1.
“I knew this team hadn’t quit all season,” Bohn said. “I knew they weren’t going to tonight.”
With minimal action over the last three minutes, the game headed into overtime. Over the two 10-minute periods, both teams took a conservative approach. Axtman was called into action twice, but nothing was getting by the captain.
Having kept the score at 1-1, the game would be decided in penalty kicks.
First up to shoot was Dishnica, who made easy work of the shot, rolling it past the goalkeeper. The hosts looked to even out the score, but a chip shot was no match for Axtman, who stared down his opponent after punching the ball away from the goal.
Next up for the Leopards was sophomore defender Joseph Lee, who deked out the goalkeeper and rolled the ball softly in for a 2-0 lead. The Mountain Hawks quickly made it 2-1 after their next shot.
Faust was the next to shoot, and his rocket that almost broke through the back of the net gave the visitors a 3-1 advantage. The next shot would be crucial, as Axtman made a spectacular save, diving to his right to make the next shot the most important of the game.
“They should have killed me before PKs,” Axtman said. “Now the game’s in my hands.”
With the game on the line, Martin stepped up to the ball. The sophomore smoked in a shot that sent the stadium into a frenzy.
“There wasn’t really pressure because I knew Axtman had already saved,” Martin said. “It was more like Axtman relieving all of that helped us out, and I think he did a great job.”
For his five-save performance, Axtman was awarded the Patriot League Championship MVP trophy.
“This group is fantastic,” Axtman said. “We had lots of highs and lows. We were 2-5-1 at one point, not winning games, not scoring goals, but damn, look where we are now.”
With the win, the Leopards received an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Their opponent will be decided on Monday, and the first round game will take place on Thursday.