Drexel University Athletics
Drexel University
Georgia State
Ruff's Last-Second Goal Lifts Dragons to Victory Over Georgia State in Overtime
10/11/2008 3:42:37 PM | Men's Soccer
Philadelphia – Senior defender Bryan Ruff scored on a header off a free kick by Anthony Bafile with two seconds remaining in the first overtime to give Drexel an exciting 2-1 win over Georgia State (4-4-3, 0-2-2 CAA). Ruff's clutch score gave the Dragons (4-4-3, 2-1-1 CAA) a key victory in conference play heading into a two-game road trip next week. Leland Raum scored his second goal in as many matches to put Drexel on top in the first half.
Drexel dominated the offensive flow in the first half and after the period Georgia State went on the offensive. Shots were a tight 14-12 in Drexel's favor in the match, but the Panthers held a slight 5-4 edge in corner kicks. In a physical contest overall, the Panthers were whistled for 17 fouls to Drexel's nine infractions, but the Dragons were carded five times while Georgia State was booked twice in the match.
Raum gave the Dragons a 1-0 lead in the 11th minute. After a good build up by the Dragons in the offensive zone, Andrew Goldberg served a ball across the box from the left side. Two headers by Georgia State's defense failed to clear the ball from the goal box. Anthony Bafile headed the rebound toward the middle of the goal where Raum connected for the tally.
The Panthers remained on the defensive for the majority of the first half. Georgia State's best chance at an equalizer came with just over five minutes left in the period when the Panthers keyed a quick transition attack. Linus Warendh found the ball on his foot with a wide open field ahead of him. Warendh carried the ball into the box and blasted a shot to the right side. Robertson timed his dive and deflected the shot wide. Tobias Nagy collected the rebound and took another shot, but it went just wide of the goal.
Georgia State swung the momentum on offense in the second half, earning five corner kicks in the half and mounting several solid offensive build-ups. The Panthers' best opportunity came 20 minutes into the period off a corner taken by Warendh. Robertson came out to challenge the high service near the front edge of the goal box. The keeper failed to cleanly punch out the ball, however, and fell to the ground on the challenge. Drexel's remaining defenders answered the call and quickly cleared the ball after one bounce in the box.
The Panthers got their equalizer with just under 16 minutes left in the match. Stephen Minyono, the CAA's leading scorer, carried the ball into the box, outmuscling Greg Ermold on the challenge. He lifted a cross that Robertson leapt to challenge, getting one hand on it. But Robertson's effort was not enough to clear the ball as Dathan Knott headed in the rebound to draw the match at 1-1.
Minyono was in the center of another offensive chance with five minutes remaining in regulation. He took a feed from Knott on the left side and blasted a low liner to the left side of the net. Robertson dove to the left and pushed the ball wide for the clear, preserving the tie as the match wound its way toward overtime for the second time in the last three matches.
Ruff's game-winning tally was the result of a foul just inside midfield near the right sideline. Bafile struck a high cross that curved to the left side of the box. Ruff charged in and connected on a running header that spun the ball into the left corner of the net with two ticks left on the clock, sending his teammates and those assembled into a frenzied victory celebration.
Drexel travels to play Hofstra and Virginia Commonwealth on the road next week. The Dragons will meet the Pride on Tuesday, Oct. 14 at 7:00 p.m. The match will be held at Adelphi University due to the presidential debates taking place at Hofstra that evening.
Ga. State 0 1 0 - 1
Drexel 1 0 1 - 2
Scoring Summary
11:36 DU Leland Raum (Bafile)
73:19 GSU Dathan Knott (Minyono)
99:58 DU Bryan Ruff (Bafile)
Shots: DU 14, GSU 12
Corners: GSU 5, DU 4
Saves: Robertson (Drexel) 5, Carvalho (GSU) 4
Fouls: GSU 17, DU 9
Cards: Syfert (GSU), yellow, 17:14; Schieve (DU), yellow, 33:36; Bafile (DU), yellow, 67:06; Warendh (GSU), yellow, 67:22; Wampler (DU), yellow, 84:15; Ruff (DU), yellow, 91:33; Johnson (DU), yellow, 91:57
