The No. 15/16 Boston University men’s soccer team had proven itself a dominant frontrunner in non-conference play – never once relinquishing a lead – until No. 23/23 Brown University came back from two goals down to tie the Terriers, 3-3, in two overtimes, Wednesday night at Stevenson Field.
In its non-conference finale, BU’s (6-2-2) backline spoiled a reputation characterized by second half shutouts to defend narrow leads, in its two biggest wins over then-No. 1/4 St. John’s University and then-No. 12/14 University of Connecticut.
‘We tried to pass the ball out of the back and gave it right back to Brown,’ BU coach Neil Roberts said. ‘The midfielders couldn’t get to it. That’s one thing we can’t do, create goals.’
The defense, headed by sophomore Colin Henry and junior Matthew Shea, hadn’t given up more than one goal in a game all season. Prior to the game, the backline had given up just three goals through nine games and was on track to challenge the start of the 1985 squad, which gave up just five goals through its first eleven games.
But according to Roberts, it wasn’t surprising to see Brown (4-0-4) score three times.
‘It was just one of those fast-paced games that’s really exciting and goes back and forth,’ Roberts said. ‘On the road, you can’t get upset when you get those kinds of games.’
Last year’s matchup between BU and Brown took on an opposite tone, as 20 shots combined yielded a 0-0 tie after 90 minutes.
Senior midfielder Samuel Appiah started the scoring early this year, netting the first goal, unassisted, in the first minute of the game – with a little help from the Brown defense.
‘We crossed it in and they kind of banged it into their own goal,’ Roberts said. ‘The second goal was a lot nicer and our guys were in a good spot.’
The second goal came off Henry’s foot in the 19th minute – it was his first of the season.
‘[Sophomore midfielder Michael Bustamente] got it in to [senior midfielder Tom Strackhouse],’ Roberts said. ‘He tapped it out to [Colin Henry] under pressure to set up a nice goal.’
After Brown erased the lead, BU regained it on a goal by sophomore forward Stephen Knox from 10 yards out, in the 54th minute. But forward Sean Rosa grabbed it right back for the Brown Bears in 57th minute, burying a dart from 25 yards out.
Through the final 33 minutes and two overtimes, the 3-3 score endured. But the Terriers had the upper hand, Roberts said.
‘We controlled the game through the final 15 minutes and through the two overtimes,’ he said. ‘That’s something positive we can take from the game.’
In overtime, junior forward Aaron O’Neal had two one-on-one chances in front of the net. On his first chance, he lost control of the ball in the penalty box, and on the second, he misfired by just a couple feet. Knox got behind the defense for several tries, but he couldn’t convert either.
‘We’ve been up, down, tied, in overtime,’ Roberts said. ‘We’ve seen everything but haven’t played a full game yet. It will come in time.’
The Terriers are expecting senior forward and co-captain Shaun Taylor to return from a foot injury sometime next week.
‘The big thing is, we got out of non-conference 6-2-2,’ Roberts said. ‘Even though we tied this, it doesn’t diminish that.’
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