October 25, 2009
Garcia's OT Strike Keeps Eagles Perfect In NECC Play, 1-0

- With information from Mitchell Sports Information -

New London, Conn. – The Daniel Webster College men's soccer team waited 25 hours and another 90 minutes to find a way to force an upset-minded Mitchell College team into overtime. But once that was done, they needed just 20 seconds to put the Mariners away.

Senior captain Andre Garcia (Springfield, Mass.) knocked home Alex Jackson's (Kent, Ohio) free kick off the right sideline 20 ticks into the extra session giving the Eagles a tightly contested 1-0 victory over the host Mariners Sunday afternoon in a NECC matchup that was delayed one day and one hour after heavy rains postponed the original Saturday matinee.

The win was another important one as Daniel Webster (9-4-0 overall, 5-0-0 NECC) remained perfect in league play, maintaining a one-game lead over second place Newbury (4-1 NECC) and a game and a half lead over Lesley (4-1-1), setting up a monster late-season 8:00 p.m. showdown Tuesday night with the Lynx in Cambridge, Mass. that could determine the regular season champion.

The win also matched the Eagles' nine victories from a season ago, both which are now all time season wins records for the program.

The Eagles also clinched a NECC tournament first-round bye with the victory, ushering them automatically into the semifinal round once the playoffs begin.

Neither team could gain an advantage during the first 90 minutes of the contest. The pesky Mariners (4-10-0 overall, 2-3-0 NECC) put four shots on goal but were turned away each time by sophomore keeper Joe Keene (Bristol, N.H). Sophomore goalkeeper Kevin Woodford (Clinton, Conn.) turned away six shots for the Mariners in regulation.

Just 15 seconds into the extra session, the Mariners were hit with a costly yellow card that gave the Eagles an indirect kick from 35 yards out near the right sideline. Jackson served up a high cross to the front of the net, where Garcia pulled it down and knocked it in for the golden goal.

The Eagles finished with advantages in total shots (17-10), shots on goal (10-4) and corner kicks (10-5) and played a disciplined game, earning just four whistles for fouls against 12 for the Mariners.