Men’s soccer ties No. 9 New Mexico
January 27, 2007
For the second straight game the green and gold battled a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation powerhouse into double overtime without coming away with a loss. This time the Hornets battled No. 9 New Mexico to a 1-1 tie Friday at Hornet Soccer Field.
Senior Ryan Rhoads capitalized early in the second half, heading in the tying goal and helping the Hornets uphold the score for the tie. Rhoads’ goal came in the 49th minute when the senior crashed in from seven yards getting his header into the net before New Mexico goalkeeper Mike Graczyk could make the save.
The play developed when junior midfielder Kurtis Lindsey found Pedro Lupercio open on the right side with a ball played over the top of the Lobos’ back line.
The Hornets pushed for a win in the 104th minute when senior Eliot Ricks-Chambers had an opportunity to end the match with a low-driven blast that went just wide of the post.
“We talk to all of our players that hard work is the basic pyramid to be a quality athlete,” coach Michael Linenberger said.
While the Sac State offense created several scoring opportunities, Hornets freshman goalkeeper Ryan Kenny made nine stops to keep the Lobos from coming away with a victory.
During the first overtime New Mexico has chances to end things. Kenny made a diving save on P.J. Wilson’s shot, while the crossbar denied Brandon Barklage with less than three minutes left in regulation. Kenny received help from defenders Zach Tuss and Adam Owens and left back Jack Jones.
“I give credit to my teammates,” Jones said. “We had a couple guys step up and play big for us tonight.”
In the first half, Sac State was called for a foul in the box, resulting in a penalty kick for New Mexico. Barklage went low with a shot to the right corner and Kenny guessed correctly, but was unable to stop the shot.
Sacramento State is now 5-10-2 on the season and 2-4-2 in the MPSF, while the Lobos post a record of 10-3-3 overall and 5-1-1 in league. Next up for the Hornets are the UNLV Runnin’ Rebels at 1 p.m. on Sunday in what will be the final home game for the Hornets.
