Men's Soccer Comes Back to Tie Binghamton, 1-1

LEWISBURG, Pa. – The Bucknell University soccer team battled from behind to earn a draw in nonconference action for the third time this season as Patrick O'Hara capped off a furious Bucknell comeback attempt with a neat flick on a corner from Matt Thorsheim in the 88^th minute to tie the game at one.

Bucknell played to its fourth 1-1 tie this season, and now stands at 5-5-4 after 14 games.

Bucknell looked good early on, with Mo Tall getting a good chance just 52 seconds in, but his half volley in the box flashed just right of the goal. Nick King and Tall each picked up a shot in the next three minutes as Bucknell started the game brightly.

Binghamton got back into the game at the five minute mark, forcing an excellent save from senior goalkeeper Emmett Witmer, who got down low to his left to prod away a low shot by Binghamton's Michael Bush.

The Bearcats broke through at the 21:41 mark when Lucas Arzan and Matthew Cozetti played a nice give and go from the top of the 18 to the right side. Cozetti played a cutting pass into the box that Arzan was able to poke home to give the Bearcats a 1-0 lead.

Bucknell, which came behind to win for the first time after trailing at Northeastern one week prior to Tuesday's match, didn't manage a shot on goal for the remainder of the period as Binghamton took a 1-0 lead at the halftime whistle.

Bucknell's first chance in the second half came when Nick King won a free kick just outside of the box in the 59^th minute. However, the senior's corresponding effort from the set piece went high of the goal.

The turning point of the game came in the 85^th minute, when Binghamton, which looked dangerous on the counter attack throughout the game, made a run down the left side of the field. The Bearcats' Haris Brkovic won a penalty on the left side of the box at the 84:20 mark with a penalty kick, looking to give Binghamton a comfortable 2-0 lead.

Witmer dove to his right to save Brkovic's effort from the spot kick, repeating his heroics from the 2018 matchup where he saved a late goal again from the penalty spot from the Bearcats as Bucknell went on to win 2-1 on the road.

Witmer's save kept Bucknell in the game, and the save proved vital as Bucknell went on to equalize at the 88:19 mark courtesy of O'Hara, who has scored in back-to-back games and in three out of his last four appearances. O'Hara managed a deft flick on Thorsheim's corner kick to the near post, touching the ball home for his fifth goal of the season, and sending the game to overtime.

Witmer once again was involved in the extra period as Binghamton mustered the clearest chance of the overtime periods at the 107:57 mark. Oliver Svalander made a darting run up the field before firing a low shot that Witmer parried to the left side. Ethan Homler was on hand to potentially put home the winning goal, but his shot clipped the crossbar as Bucknell went on to earn a draw against the Bearcats.

Each team registered 14 shots, with Binghamton holding a 5-3 advantage in shots on goal. The Bison managed ten corners to Binghamton's six.

"I told the guys that it was good that we fought back after a very poor first half," said Head Coach Brendan Nash. "If Emmett Witmer doesn't make the penalty save, it goes to 2-0 and the game is over. Give credit to Emmett for making a huge play to keep us alive. Overall, our set pieces were poor on the day, and the goal we scored on the corner kick wasn't exactly how it was supposed to go. That just shows when you push you can create your own good luck. We subbed a lot in the game to keep legs fresh for Saturday. We were not looking past this game, but we had to keep Army in the back of our minds."

Bucknell will now look ahead to its final home game of the regular season against Army on Saturday at 4 p.m. as the race for Patriot League postseason positioning continues.

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Team Stats

Patrick O'Hara

Matt Thorsheim

Nick King

Mo Tall

Players Mentioned

Nick King

Patrick O'Hara

Mo Tall

Matt Thorsheim

Emmett Witmer