READING, Pa. – The Albright men's soccer team claimed a 3-2 overtime win at Shirk Stadium Thursday afternoon in a thrilling matchup against a tough Penn State Altoona team.
With the win, the Lions advance to 3-5-1 overall entering MAC Commonwealth action. Meanwhile, the Nittany Lions saw their six-game win streak snapped as they fall to 7-2 overall.
Both teams battled back and forth in the first half as Penn State Altoona held an 8-5 shot advantage over Albright. The Nittany Lions finally broke through in the 24
th minute scoring off of an initial shot that rebounded off the left post to take the lead. The Lions were unable to find the back of the net in the first 45 minutes of action as Penn state Altoona held onto the 1-0 lead entering the half.
Senior Alex MacDonald had an opportunity to tie the game up in the 61
st minute off a penalty shot that was stopped by Nittany Lions goalkeeper Tommy Packevicz. Albright finally got on the board in the 72
nd minute when senior
Yaniv Gonyoe broke through the defense and tucked the ball in the bottom left corner of the goal to tie the game at one. The Lions took the lead in the 79
th minute when senior Eli Bowers sent a perfect ball in off a free kick to which junior defender
Reece Adam finished with a header into the back of the net for his first career goal. Penn State Altoona tied the game up at two with a late push in the 88
th minute that would send the game into overtime.
First-year Joey Loose put pressure on the Nittany Lions goalkeeper in the 94
th minute, but Packevicz made a save that kept the game going. Gonyoe scored the game winner in the 97
th minute after slicing through the Penn State Altoona back line to claim the 3-2 overtime win for Albright.
Albright held a slight 16-14 shot advantage over Penn State Altoona as both teams tallied six shots on goal. First-year goalkeeper
Chris Denholm earns his first career win for the Lions with two saves and a big second half performance in 52:43 minutes of play. Packevics receives the loss for the Nittany Lions with three saves in the full amount of action.
The Lions will open up MAC Commonwealth play Saturday at Lebanon Valley at 4 p.m.