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Crocker, E.
1
Wentworth WIT (0-2-3,0-1-0)
2
Winner Gordon GC (5-0-0,1-0-0)
Wentworth WIT
(0-2-3,0-1-0)
1
Final
2
Gordon GC
(5-0-0,1-0-0)
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Wentworth WIT 1 0 1
Gordon GC 0 2 2

Next Game:

Clark

9/17/2014 | 7:00 p.m.

Next Game

Full Schedule
Sep. 17 (Wed) / 7:00 p.m.
 Clark
History

Game Recap: Men's Soccer |

Second-Half Heroics Keep Men's Soccer Undefeated


WENHAM, Mass.—Two second half goals, including a header by defender Sammy Wilson (Ansonia, Conn.) in the 84th minute, aided Gordon Men's Soccer to a thrilling comeback in the Commonwealth Coast Conference opener against Wentworth. The Fighting Scots struggled to manage the counter-attack of the Leopards in the first half, but steady possession in the second half led to a 2-1 win on a soggy Saturday night under the Brigham lights.
 
Gordon's looked to set the pace in the early going, getting an quick shot from Nathan Bilbie (Shrewsbury, Pa.) just over a minute into the game. Thirteen minutes would pass before either team got another chance at goal, when Gordon freshman Joshua Cochran (Bellville, Ohio) chipped a shot just over the crossbar.
 
Wentworth played a patient game in the midfield, waiting for the prime opportunity when Gordon had pushed too many men into the offensive end. Adam Rhodes (Litchfield, Conn.) took the first shot of the match for the Leopards 18 minutes in, but wide of the net. Rhodes had another opportunity three minutes later and this time he made the Scots pay. The senior midfielder took a through ball and skipped a shot from 25 yards away. Initially the shot looked to be pushed too far left, but an odd bounce of a defender kicked the ball back on target and over the head of Josh Spoonhour (Greencastle, Pa.) for a 1-0 lead.
 
The Fighting Scots had a few opportunities in the final 10 minutes of the half, but the shots couldn't find the frame of the net and Gordon trailed Wentworth 1-0 at the break.
 
Gordon's second-half approach of grinding down a defense seemed to finally open up the field for the Scots in their offensive half. After being held in check by the Wentworth defense for a majority of the first half, the Fighting Scots were able to get four quick shots in the first 10 minutes of the second period. Evan Crocker (Akron, Ohio) hit a ball from the right side at 54:44 and forced Kevin Pepin (Fairhaven, Mass.) to make his first save of the contest.
 
Wentworth played a bend-but-don't-break defense in the early stages of the second half, going unscathed after the first few shots until Wilson sent a long chip into the Leopards' zone. The wet turf combined with the high-arching pass bounced the ball over Pepin's head and Bilbie beat the WIT keeper to finish the play for the equalizer.
 
The Leopards managed two shots immediately after the Gordon score, but were stopped by times by the Scots' organized defense. The Fighting Scots looked like they had taken the lead on a Cochran header off a corner kick, but a Wentworth defender headed the ball out before it crossed the goal line to keep things even.
 
A card-inducing foul deep in the Scots' offensive zone gave the team their first lead at 83:19, when Torrey Stricklin (Warwick, R.I.) found the head of Wilson on a line-drive free-kick. Wilson dove in the center of the 18-yard box and connected just enough to send one past a diving Pepin.
Two corners for the Leopards in the closing minutes garnered no real scoring chances and the Fighting Scots held on for their fifth consecutive win to start the year. Wentworth fell to 0-2-3 and matches up with Maine-Farmington tomorrow afternoon.
 
Pepin made three saves in the losing effort, while Spoonhour picked up the win despite not registering a single stop. Gordon finished the game outshooting the Leopards 17-6—13-4 in the second half.
 
Gordon continues its home schedule on Wednesday with a 7 p.m. start time against Clark University. 
 
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