Men’s Soccer Shocked Late; Earn 1-1 Tie Against No. 5 Riverhawks

GOLDEN – NSCAA No. 6 Colorado School of Mines men's soccer led 1-0 in the closing seconds in its default home-opener against No. 5 Northeastern State, yet fell victim to a late score and finished in a 1-1, double overtime draw Sunday at CSM Soccer Stadium in Golden.  

Junior Tannor Randle staked Mines (2-0-1) with the 1-0 lead at 82:30, collecting a loose ball in the short left wing and lining a 14-yard look downward off the crossbar for his first of the season.

Faced with their first deficit this season, the Riverhawks dialed up the offensive pressure, and with 1.8 seconds left, scored the equalizer as Jordan Schmoker placed a pass from inside the left corner of the 18-yard box to the front net where sliding Juan Peralta footed the point-blank try.

The physical match lived up to the hype as the premier Division II contest of the weekend as the 2012 NCAA Tournament participants combined for 36 shots, 18 shots on goal, 14 corner kicks, 25 fouls and four yellow cards.

Led by three shots on frame from junior Jared Herselman, the men landed eight of their 16 attempts on net. Senior Tesho Akindele directed two of his three tries on wood, while junior Richard Garvey and senior Alex Gunberg each had one.

Garvey just missed on his season's first points and the game's opening score in the 55th minute, connecting on a header in traffic at the left post, but NSU keeper Eric Shepard was positioned perfectly to grasp the two-headed save.

Senior netminder Colin Baker (2-0-1) accrued a season-high 11 saves in the full 110 minutes, while his counterpart Shepard tallied seven.

Schmoker, Peralta and Edgar Gonzaga paced the Riverhawks (2-0-1) with two shots on goal apiece.

In the midst of a season-long five-game homestand, the Orediggers begin RMAC play at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 20 against Colorado Mesa (2-2).