PORTSMOUTH, Ohio (Men's Soccer) – The Shawnee State men's soccer team outshot opponent Indiana Tech nine to three in the second half and used a relentless offensive attack to put up a three-goal flurry late in the same half to rally from a 2-1 deficit at halftime as the Bears defeated the Warriors 4-2 on Tuesday evening at the Shawnee Turf.
Shawnee State, who moved to 1-2 on the young season with the victory, also outshot Indiana Tech nine to four in the shots on goal category.
Throughout the first half, the game appeared to be a grudge match, as both teams made advances into each other's end.
It was the Bears that would strike the first salvo as Martyn Sayer was fouled by Fabian Kaufmann in the sixth minute to set up an early penalty kick opportunity for Shawnee State, setting up a big opportunity for the Bears to strike. Just like his previous opportunity on the year against Columbia International, Sayer's shot rang true with a shot that painted the upper left corner of the net to give Shawnee State the early lead with just 5:20 gone in the contest.
It wouldn't take long for Indiana Tech to respond. With 15 minutes gone in the half, the Warriors' Brandon Dismore launched a free kick toward the net in an attempt to set up a header attempt for the Indiana Tech. Even though the kick sailed higher than anticipated, to the point where a waiting Brandon Pfeiffer (SO/Canal Winchester, Ohio) was seemingly there for the save, the ball went through Pfeiffer's hands, allowing Indiana Tech to tie the game at a 1-1 count.
For the next 20 minutes, both teams would scrap around the middle third of the field as physical play by both teams negated the offensive attacks of both clubs.
The Warriors were able to find a crease in the tough Shawnee State defense during the 34th minute as Brennan Cochran took a feed from Nathan Waits and nailed it past a diving Pfeiffer to give Indiana Tech a 2-1 edge, with the tally holding steady to the halftime break.
In the second half, both defenses held firm to start as only one shot on goal was recorded over the first 20 minutes. With both offensive attacks being held down by physical defense, it looked as if the score would say the same. The Bears, however, had other plans.
Caspar Nolte (FR/Germantown, Ohio) started off the rally by finding a crease on the right side of the pitch and took advantage of a falling Adam Viviano to score the game-tying goal in the 67th minute off a dish from Chris Wiget (SR/Piketon, Ohio). Just over a minute later, Wiget drove toward the middle of the field and put up a shot from around 20 yards away, which deflected off of Viviano's hands and tucked into the right side of the net to turn a 2-1 deficit into a 3-2 advantage for Shawnee State within a span of a minute and 26 seconds.
From there, the Bears not only controlled the pace, but possession of the ball as Shawnee State played in attack mode for the majority of the second half, with the Bears finishing with nine total shots to Indiana Tech's three in the second frame compared to eight apiece for each ball club in the first 45 minutes. Nolte finished off the game's scoring with a goal in the 83rd minute off of a rebound from an Avery Patton (SR/Pickerington, Ohio) shot to score his first two career goals in the home opener and give Shawnee State the 4-2 win over the Warriors.
"After the first goal we scored, we got away from what we wanted to do," head coach Ron Goodson said. "We made a few adjustments at the half and came out and played a great second half. We got great play from Chris Wiget off of the bench, and Martyn Sayer (JR/Liverpool, England), Avery Patton, and Matt Williams (FR/West Salem, Ohio) controlled midfield and backline played very solid."
For the Bears, Nolte led the way with his aforementioned pair of goals on three shots, and with his efforts, was named the Portsmouth Pizzeria Player of the Game. Wiget added a goal on his lone shot of the evening and an assist, while Sayer's PK goal in the fifth minute put the junior at a two-for-two mark on the season in penalty kicks.
The Warriors were led offensively by Brennan Cochran, who had a goal on four shots, while Dinsmore's goal in the 15th minute being his lone shot on the evening.
After a three-day layoff, Shawnee State will return to the pitch for two consecutive days as the Bears will play Saint Francis University (Ind.) and Saint Xavier University (Ill.) on Saturday and Sunday. Both games have a scheduled start time of 1 p.m. at the Shawnee Turf.
