Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Navy
Schmiegel's Overtime Tally Lifts Bucknell Men's Soccer Past Navy, 2-1, Before Record Crowd
9/27/2008 8:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Sept. 27, 2008
LEWISBURG, Pa. - A record crowd of 1,202 at newly dedicated Holmes Stadium went home happy Saturday night, as Bucknell senior co-captain Mark Schmiegel (Toms River, N.J./Toms River North) scored both goals in a 2-1 overtime victory over Navy in the Patriot League opener for both teams.
Bucknell struggled defensively on its recent 0-3 road trip, and things did not start out well for the Bison. Navy had the better of play in the opening minutes, and they cashed in a goal just 8:51 into the match when Mike Porcelli, stationed with his back to the goal inside the 6-yard box, deflected in a shot from Adam Pennington.
The Bison found their legs after the Navy goal, however, and outshot the Midshipmen 25-6 the rest of the way (26-8 overall). Sean King (Medford, N.J./Shawnee), who was active all night for Bucknell, had the team's first good scoring chance, just missing the upper right corner with a hard strike in the 27th minute.
About 10 minutes later, Schmiegel pocketed the equalizer when he knocked in a loose ball from point blank range. Chris Hennings (West Chester, Pa./Henderson) set the play in motion with a run down the right side and a perfect cross to Luke Joyner (Dallas, Texas/J.J. Pearce) in front. Joyner played the ball down with his chest and kept it alive in traffic, setting up Schmiegel for the put-away.
Bucknell controlled play from start to finish in the second half but could not get one past Navy keeper Nolan Grebb (eight saves). Grebb made a terrific diving stop on a header by Alex Russo (Middletown, N.J./Christian Brothers Academy) in the 60th minute, and four minutes later Anthony Ferraro (West Long Branch, N.J./Shore Regional) had a wonderful opportunity on a diving header from 10 yards out, but he missed high by just inches.
With 16 minutes to play Tommy McCabe (Sarasota, Fla./Cardinal Mooney) went sliding into the goal trying to tap in a Hennings cross to the far post, but the ball went just across the goal mouth and out of play. Then with just three minutes left Ross Liberati (Warwick, Md./Tower Hill) sent one just over the crossbar on a rebound after Grebb stopped Schmiegel's initial shot.
Not frustrated by the close misses, Bucknell won it 7:36 into sudden-death overtime with its sharpest passing combination of the night. Conor O'Brien (Mt. Sinai, N.Y./St. Anthony's) dribbled through the midfield and played a ball to King at the top of the box. King sent a one-touch pass to Hennings wide on the right side, and Hennings sent it right back in to Joyner at the 6-yard stripe. With a defender on him, Joyner let the ball pass through to Schmiegel, who was wide open for the golden goal, his first since the 2006 NCAA Tournament against George Mason.
Schmiegel had his first career multi-goal game, while Hennings, who came in leading the Patriot League with seven goals, notched his first two assists of the season.
O'Brien's six-game points streak - the program's fourth-longest since 1964 - came to an end, but O'Brien had a stellar night in the midfield, setting up a number of Bucknell's scoring chances.
The evening began with a ceremony to dedicate Holmes Stadium, the two-year-old stadium venue that supports both Varsity Soccer Field and Graham Field. Steve Holmes was the featured speaker at the event, along with Bucknell President Brian C. Mitchell and director of athletics and recreation John Hardt.
The crowd of 1,202 was the highest ever at the new facility, surpassing the total of 1,158 at last season's Bucknell-Lehigh match that was televised on the Fox Soccer Channel.
The Bison will be back in action on Wednesday at La Salle at 7 p.m., followed by a return to Patriot League play next Saturday afternoon at Holy Cross.
