NEWBERRY — Till Neumann continued his freshman campaign when he scored the game-winning goal in the second overtime period to lift Newberry College past Mount Olive in a 3-2 soccer thriller on Wednesday.
Neumann, who ranks third in the conference with eight goals, shot past the defense and secured the victory for the Wolves (3-6-2). The Trojans’ (6-4-1) knotted the game at two in the 82nd minute on a goal from Nikolai Iotov, who shot from the outside of the box and found a way past Newberry’s goalkeeper Brad Dixon.
Mount Olive controlled the ball for the first 20 minutes of the contest, out shooting the Wolves 6-4. It was Newberry’s staunch defensive effort that would leave the Trojan’s only mustering five shots in the remainder of the half.
The Wolves got their first point on the board in the 37th minute when Steve Martinez fed the ball to Pedro Campos, who scored up the middle at the 22-yd. line. Newberry increased their lead just shy of the 65-minute mark as Fabrizio Bucco saw an open Tobias Henriksen at the top of the box.
Newberry’s defense kept the Trojans off the stat sheet in both overtime periods. Dixon would stand tall and record 10 saves on the afternoon. The Wolves held a 27-20 advantage in shots, but were slightly edged in shots on goal 12-10.
Neumann recorded 10 shots on the game. Henriksen and Daniel Reyes combined for seven shots, with four of them being on frame.
“I thought we created a lot of good chances today and were very dynamic going forward. We struggled to finish off the game in regulation but showed a ton of character and resiliency to find a way to get it done in overtime. UMO is a good side and will continue find success the rest of the season. We will be ready for an important game against Queens on Saturday”, said head coach Bryce Cooper.
The Wolves welcome Queens’ University to Smith Road Complex on Oct.14 at 3:30 p.m.