Senior defender Alex De Carolis scored in the 88th minute as the Canisius College men's soccer played to a 1-1 draw at Bryant on Friday afternoon. The Griffs are now 1-3-1 on the season, while the Bulldogs move to 0-2-2.
“Our team showed a great deal of character to keep fighting until the final whistle today,” said Canisius head coach Dermot McGrane. “I feel that we are playing well right now and if we just continue to persevere, we will start getting rewarded with wins very soon.”
In the closing minutes of regulation, Canisius was awarded a corner kick. Senior Chris Berardi fired the ball into the box and De Carolis headed it into the top corner of the goal to pull Canisius even with just 2:11 left on the clock.
Neither team was then able to pull ahead in the extra session as the schools played to a 1-1 tie.
Bryant grabbed the early lead in the game when Curtis Orth scored in the 27th minute, taking advantage of one of the team's few first-half opportunities. Following a Canisius turnover in the midfield, Orth received the ball just outside the box and fired it in from distance for the 1-0 lead.
The score remained 1-0 for the next 60 minutes despite Canisius controlling much of the possession in the second half but it was the Bulldogs who nearly added to their lead seconds before Canisius scored. With the Griffs pressing for the equalizing goal, Bryant took advantage with a counter attack but its first attempt hit the crossbar before senior Andrew Coughlin made a save on the rebound to keep the game within one, setting up De Carolis' heroics on the other end.
In the first overtime session, Canisius nearly scored the winning goal in the closing seconds but sophomore Eric Strauchen saw his header go wide. Canisius carried that momentum into the second extra session but couldn't put away its chances and Coughlin then was forced to make another save in the closing seconds to preserve the point for Canisius.
Overall, Coughlin finished the game with four saves on the day, while Bryant's Chris Knaub recorded fives stops for the Bulldogs.
Bryant held a slight 13-12 edge in shots on the day, while the Griffs posted an 8-2 advantage in corner kicks.
Canisius continues its road trip with a game at UMass Lowell on Sunday. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
Game Notes: Canisius rallied for the second-straight season against Bryant. Last year, the Griffs scored with 4:41 remaining in regulation before securing a 3-2 overtime victory … De Carolis' tally was the first Canisius goal from the run of play this season as the first three Griffs goals of the year were from the penalty spot … The senior defender also scored for the first time Sept. 10, 2013 – ending a 33-game scoring drought … The late goal prevented Canisius from being shutout in three-straight games for the first time under fifth-year head coach McGrane and the first time overall since Sept. 10-26, 201
