Box Score

STATESBORO, GA—An unassisted goal by sophomore Stephen Chapman of Appalachian State was the only scoring for either side and the 5th-seeded Mountaineers ousted #4 NJIT from the Sun Belt Conference men's soccer championship tournament Thursday night, 1-0.
 
Appalachian State, which defeated NJIT in the regular season finale, 2-1, in overtime last Saturday, advances to face top-seeded regular season champion Hartwick in Friday afternoon's first semifinal game in the tournament hosted by Georgia Southern University.
 
App State, which was 0-2-2 in Sun Belt play before it defeated NJIT at home last weekend, is 7-7-3 overall after topping the Highlanders twice in the last six days.
 
NJIT completes its 2014 season with a record of 7-8-4. The Highlanders, 2-3, in the Sun Belt Conference regular season were doomed on Friday by a recurring problem--the inability to score and, in turn, win, away from home.
 
They were 6-0-3 at home, but after scoring a 3-2 road victory at Jacksonville in the first game of the season August 29, the Highlanders never again scored more than a single goal in a contest away from home. Indeed, their only favorable road result the rest of the season was a 0-0 tie in double overtime at Saint Joseph's in Philadelphia on September 27.

The home-away contrast was clear in Sun Belt Conference play. At home. where the Highlanders were 2-0 in Sun Belt play, they outscored the opposition 7-1. The road was far different. In 3 regular season away contests, NJIT allowed just 3 goals in regulation, but scored only once itself and lost by scores of 1-0, 1-0, and 2-1 in overtime. And then the season ended with a 1-0 defeat in the first neutral-site contest Thursday night against Appalachian State.

Chapman's decisive goal against the Highlanders Thursday night came in the 78th minute and was the result of a terrific individual effort. The sophomore, who had two goals in the regular season, carried the ball into the box with a hard run from the right wing. He then made a quick move to the inside to gain a half-step on his defender, pulling the trigger the instant his move created the opening and putting a hard shot past NJIT goalkeeper Christian Foust.
 
NJIT nearly equalized barely two minutes after the unassisted Chapman goal at the 77:49 mark.
 
Highlander forward Tommy Osipitan, who gave the Appalachian State back line trouble throughout the night, was taken down for a foul just outside the penalty area. In fact, it was close enough to the box that Osipitan pleaded his case to the referee for a penalty kick call, but to no avail.
 
Instead, the Highlanders were awarded a free kick. Senior Cristian Marcel, announced earlier in the day as the Sun Belt Conference Offensive Player of the Year, lined up to take the free kick. His try from less than 19 yards cleared the defensive wall of Mountaineers and angled down, but not enough, coming to rest in the net roofing of the goal after barely clearing the crossbar.
 
Appalachian State ceded a lot of midfield possession to NJIT until the final third of the field, but stayed solid once the ball got into the attacking area. The Mountaineers played carefully, but still had a 19-12 advantage in overall shots. Notably, they maintained a similar level of offensive pressure after the goal as they had applied before it, as opposed to retreating into a full defensive mode.
 
The shots on goal were 6-5 in favor of the winners and the corner kicks were even at five apiece.
 
Paul West made five saves for the clean sheet in goal for App State after holding the Highlanders to one goal in 94:41 last Saturday.
 
Christian Foust, who had a fine debut season for NJIT, stopped four shots for the Highlanders in his first postseason game. NJIT was also credited with a "team" save.
 
Thursday's final game brought down the curtain on the careers of some key Highlanders. In addition to Marcel, the Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Year and NJIT's top scorer (12 points) in 2014, Marko Drljic, the school's all-time Division I scorer and 2014 Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Year, will not play again for NJIT.
 
Other seniors were: Matija Blazic, a 4-year player, who, like Drljic, came to NJIT from Slovenia in Europe; DJ Diveny, a 3-year player; and Jason Chippy, a 3-year Highlander who transferred from SUNY Plattsburgh.