September 1, 2005

BOSTON - It took more than 13 minutes of overtime, but Boston University, one of the top men's soccer teams in the East, edged visiting New Jersey Institute of Technology, 3-2, Thursday night.

The Terriers, playing at home for the first time since defeating Dartmouth in the first round of the 2004 Division I men's College Cup, were pushed close to the limit by NJIT, which is in its first season as a championship-eligible full member of NCAA Division I in men's soccer.

Boston University, which won the 2004 America East Conference regular season and postseason titles and then advanced to the second round of NCAA postseason championship play, finally defeated the Highlanders, when freshman Neil Hlavaty finished the deciding goal at 3:13 of the second overtime, lifting the Terriers to the 3-2 win in the season opener for both teams.

Hlavaty was assisted by senior captain Jamie Johnson, who had scored the Terriers' two goals in regulation, and by senior Sedrick Chin.

The NJIT goals--one in each half of regulation--were scored by freshman Greg Spaulding (Amherst, N.H./Souhegan HS) and sophomore Eddie Romero (Laurel, Del./Sussex Central HS).

Freshman Dylan Broadley (Milford, N.H./Milford HS) assisted on both Highlander goals, while sophomore Robert Herrera (Dover, Del./Caesar Rodney HS) collected an assist on the second goal.

With six freshmen and three sophomores in the starting lineup, NJIT more than held its own against BU, which was picked to repeat as conference champion in the America East coaches' 2005 preseason poll.

The Highlanders led at the half, 1-0, thanks to a goal by Spaulding in the 37th minute, assisted by Broadley and Herrera, following an indirect free kick. NJIT protected the lead deep into the second half, surviving a scare 10 minutes after halftime, as BU generated three rapid-fire scoring chances in a matter of seconds.

The Terriers' flurry began with a waist-high 15-yard blast by Dan Schultz, which was thwarted on a diving reflex save by NJIT keeper Collin Cunning (Belfast, Maine/Belfast Area HS).

BU got off two more shots in the sequence, capped by a Johnson shot that hit the left post, before the Highlanders cleared.

Having withstood the dangerous flurry, NJIT settled back into its game plan and took back more of the play. "We knew they (Boston University) would pressure us and have a lot of the ball," said NJIT coach Pedro Lopes. "For the most part, the guys (NJIT) did a great job keeping things in front of us."

Indeed, the Highlanders came tantalizingly close to grabbing a 2-0 lead in their bid to upset the powerful Terriers.

With little more than 15 minutes left in regulation, NJIT freshman Clay Smith (Plano, Texas/Plano HS), who has shown already that he can produce quality shots in tight space, launched a dart from 15 yards out that was barely deflected by BU keeper Zach Riffett.

Moments later, BU knotted the score, 1-1, on a penalty kick by Johnson at 79:28. The kick was awarded when a foul was called after BU's Hlavaty was taken down in the penalty area amidst some jostling that saw NJIT defender Pablo Ponce (La Paz, Bolivia/Rutgers University) shoved off the ball without a whistle seconds earlier.

Less than a minute after tyiUniversity grabbed a 2-1 lead on Johnson's 30-yard blast from straight on that slipped above the reach of the 6-foot-4 Cunning and under the crossbar.

Faced with a stunning reversal that saw a 1-0 lead in the 80th minute turn into a 2-1 deficit in a matter of 46 seconds, many teams would have let down.

Instead, the Highlanders immediately got back to business with less than 10 minutes to play. "Our heads never went down," said Lopes.

The equalizer came just over three minutes later, at 83:34, when Broadley won a free ball at midfield and sent a long shoulder-high pass into the penalty area, where Romero was positioned, back to the goal, similar to a basketball player posting up near the basket.

Riffett, the BU goalkeeper, came off his line, hoping to play Broadley's pass, which, if untouched, could have ended up in the goal. With Riffett off his line, Romero flicked Broadley's pass, deflecting and slightly re-directing it into the back of the net on a header before the keeper could react to the new angle.

Broadley's play to set up the tying goal was typical for the Highlanders, who counterattacked with long passes into the midfield, where NJIT's won more than its share of the 50/50 balls.

After a scoreless 10-minute first overtime, the Terriers finally won at 103:13 on a quality scoring play, as Johnson, going down the middle, played the ball from 35 yards out to Chin, who was speeding down the left wing toward the corner.

Chin controlled Johnson's pass in stride and sent a crossing feed into the goal area, where Hlavaty, also running down the middle, struck the game-winner first time inside the far post from about 10 yards out..

"You have to give (Boston University) credit," said Lopes after the game. "One of the things we preach to our players is that you have to give full effort all the time. They (BU) kept coming at us and pressuring us with balls in the box and that winning goal was a product of great effort by their players."

Looking at his own team, Lopes saw many positives: "For the first time playing in a game that counts, especially mixing in so many new people, the guys did a great job."

"One of things with a young team is that you are bringing together players who were the `man' on their previous teams," the coach noted. "Their first reaction at this level is to try to do things on their own.

"However, you win as a team and that means not trying to do everything yourself. I thought we moved toward playing as a team tonight, whether it was following our game plan under pressure on defense or passing the ball to create chances for each other when we counterattacked."

The Highlanders will open their 2005 home season against another America East title contender, Stony Brook, next week. NJIT hosts the Seawolves on Tuesday, September 6 at 6:30 pm under the Lubetkin Field lights.