Men's Soccer Ties American, 1-1

LEWISBURG, Pa. -- Patrick O' Hara scored the second goal of his career to give Bucknell a 1-0 lead in the 78^th minute, but yet another late American goal in the series between the two teams helped the Eagles grab an equalizer as Bucknell tied American, 1-1, for its third consecutive 1-1 decision.

The goal by the Eagles in the 82^nd minute marks the fifth consecutive game American has found a goal against the Bison in the 80^th minute or later.

Bucknell is now 2-3-3 overall (0-0-2 PL), while American stands at 0-6-2 overall (0-1-1 PL)

Bucknell looked in control early on, controlling much of the possession. However, neither team managed a shot until 14 minutes in when Bernie Wright, who was active on the left flank all game, struck a shot wide right of the goal from distance.

Bucknell had several quality chances throughout the first half, including a well-struck shot from Railey from about 12 yards out that skimmed the top of the crossbar. Railey got a firm strike on his favored left foot that rose past American goalkeeper Jake Agnew, but the shot kept rising just high of the goal.

Jacob Mittman, just under a minute after coming on at the 22:48 mark of the first half, nearly gave Bucknell the lead as he found some space on the left side of the box. Mittman got to the ball first, but a good save from Agnew denied the sophomore his second goal of the season. Daniel Hallowell also managed a look on goal that Agnew saved.

The Bison defensively held strong in the first half, limiting the Eagles without a shot through the first 45 minutes as center back pairing Trevor Wiggins and Quinn Bredin both proved capable in the air in managing the direct attack of the Eagles through the first 45.

Bucknell, which has started the second half strong in recent fixtures, managed a shot just 30 seconds into the second half as Mo Tall sailed a well-struck shot over the goal.

Bucknell broke through after a tactical adjustment saw freshman Zach Hurchalla, coming off the bench for the first time this season, slot in at left back for the first time as Wright pushed further up the field.

The move paid immediate dividends as Wright was involved in the build up to O'Hara's goal. The senior from New York, N.Y. knifed down the left flank before playing a ball to the top of the penalty area to Matt Thorsheim. Thorsheim helped the ball on to Mittman on the right flank, who then took a touch to the endline. Mittman slid a low ball across the goalmouth that O'Hara got his right foot on as his shot went into the upper right side of the goal for a 1-0 lead in the 78^th minute.

The lead is the first for the Bison since scoring the opening goal in a 3-0 win vs. St. Francis (Pa.) on Sept. 14. Bucknell has fallen behind 1-0 in its last two games, but has managed to come back and earn a tie in each of those contests.

This time it was the Eagles who found the equalizing goal. American came back with a goal in the 88^th minute last season to tie the game and go on to earn a draw, and the story was similar on Friday. Damian Searchwell launched a long ball from the right side near midfield that found the foot of Nick Dimitrijevic near the corner of the penalty box. Dimitrijevic rocketed a hard shot past Bison goalkeeper Luke Smith that found the roof of the net and tied things up.

American drew up one more good chance in the final minutes, but the Bucknell defense got in the way of the free kick routine by the Eagles as Malachy McGovern had a good look near the top of the box.

Bucknell pressed on in the final five minutes, but only managed a lone shot by Railey as it went on to settle for its third straight 1-1 draw.

Bucknell outshot the Eagles 19-4, but only managed four of those shots on frame. American converted its only shot on target in the draw. The goal by O'Hara was the second of his career, while Mittman picked up his second career assist. Thorsheim's assist was his third of the season, and he leads the team with four goals and three assists for 11 points.

"In the Patriot League it's not about the statistics, it's about the results," said Head Coach Brendan Nash after the game. "It doesn't matter that we outshot them, what matters is that we gave up a late goal when we were trying to protect the lead. Now we have to refocus and get ready for Loyola."

Bucknell will host Patriot League preseason favorite Loyola (Md.) at Emmitt Field on Wednesday, Oct. 2 at 7 p.m.

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Team Stats

Patrick O'Hara

Jacob Mittman

Matt Thorsheim

Nick King

Players Mentioned

Quinn Bredin

Daniel Hallowell

Zach Hurchalla

Jacob Mittman

Luke Smith

Mo Tall

Matt Thorsheim

Trevor Wiggins

Bernie Wright

Players Mentioned

Quinn Bredin

Daniel Hallowell

Zach Hurchalla

Jacob Mittman

Luke Smith

Mo Tall

Matt Thorsheim

Trevor Wiggins

Bernie Wright