Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
#14 Lehigh
Bucknell Men's Soccer Upsets Top-Seeded Lehigh on Penalty Kicks to Advance to PL Championship Game
11/3/2006 7:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Nov. 3, 2006
BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Exacting revenge from recent postseason appearances, the Bucknell men's soccer team pulled off a stunning upset Friday night in the Patriot League Tournament semifinals by defeating top-seeded and nationally ranked Lehigh 4-1 on penalty kicks after playing to a 1-1 tie. The win advances Bucknell to just its second Patriot League championship game, and its first since 1993.
The Bison, who are 8-7-5 this season, will take on second-seeded Lafayette Sunday at 1 p.m. at Lehigh's Ulrich Sports Complex. Bucknell, which had lost to Lehigh in each of its last three postseason appearances, matched the Mountain Hawks feat from 2003 when they were seeded fourth and upset the top-seeded Bison on their home field.
After playing to a 1-1 tie, Bucknell's junior goalkeeper Joey Kuterbach (Kingwood, Texas/Kingwood) shined in the penalty kicks as he stopped Lehigh's first two shots while the Bison converted their first four. A goal by Chris Hennings (West Chester, Pa./Henderson) clinched the victory for Bucknell.
The Bison actually fell behind late in the first half as Lehigh (15-1-2), which entered the contest with an 11-match winning streak and a No. 14 national ranking, went up 1-0 at the 36:26 mark on the third goal of the season by Adam Gazda.
The Mountain Hawks took the 1-0 lead into halftime, but it took Dirk Swaneveld (Blairstown, N.J./North Warren) just 2:05 into the second half to net the equalizer with his first career goal. Justin Wolf (Bartlett, Ill./Bartlett) picked up his second assist of the season on the goal that came from 25 yards out.
Kuterbach tallied two saves, both in the second half, to up his season total to 94. His counterpart, Jim Morahan, who was a Second Team All-Patriot League selection, made five saves.
Offensively, the game was relatively even statistically with Lehigh outshooting Bucknell 16-11, but the Bison winning the corner kick battle 5-3.
Bucknell's victory helped it snap a three-game postseason losing streak to Lehigh. The Bison lost 1-0 in 2000, 2-0 in 2003 and 6-5 on penalty kicks in 2004. All three matches were in the semifinal round.
While Bucknell advanced to the championship game, Friday's result officially goes down as a tie, giving the Bison five this year to set a new program record.
Bucknell will take on Lafayette, which defeated Colgate 2-1 Friday afternoon and is 11-4-1 this season, in Sunday's championship game. The Bison lost 1-0 on a last-second goal to the Leopards in their regular season meeting early last month. In the only championship game appearance in program history, Bucknell lost to fourth-seeded Army 4-2 in 1993.
