\The No. 15 UNM men’s soccer team took down the No. 21 American University Eagles 2-1 in overtime on Sunday at the UNM Soccer Complex.
With the win, the Lobos claimed the TLC Plumbing & Utility Invitational Championship.
It was a good victory for the Lobos, but by no means an easy one, UNM head coach Jeremy Fishbein said..
"We were fortunate," he said. "We got out with a win against a good team when we weren't at our best. I'm really proud of the guys… I was happy with [the win], but you can't put yourself in these situations too often because you won't always come out on top."
Just two minutes in, the Lobos were awarded a corner kick, but nothing came out of it.
During theeighth minute, junior defender Yuri Domiciano took a shot that was too wide on the left side. Two minutes later, junior midfielder/defender Josh Goss took a shot of his own, but this ball went too high.
UNM got a few other chances but the Lobos just couldn’t find the back of the net. The Eagles, however, took advantage of their own opportunities, and just five minutes before the first half was over, they took the lead.
A long free kick was sent into the UNM box. Lobo keeper Jason Beaulieu was able to punch it away, but the ball went straight toward AU’s sophomore forward Nick Sifrin.
Sifrin tapped the ball past Beaulieu. Lobo freshman defender Aaron Herrera had a chance for the save. He slid, but he was too late.
The first half ended with the Lobos (5-1-1) trailing 7-6 in shots, 4-2 in corner kicks, and 1-0 on the scoreboard.
Fishbein said he was not happy with this and described his team’s performance was “flat.”
“It wasn’t us the first half. I’m not really sure what it was,” he said. “I thought we prepared pretty well for it. It’s just been a lot of games, a lot of pressure, a lot of ranked opponents. In that first half it really showed.”
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In the second half, the Lobos lead 13-6 in shots and 5-2 in corner kicks. But although they were finally dominating, it looked as if AU (6-2-0) would walk out with the victory.
That is until junior forward Niko Hansen saved the day.
Just five minutes before regulation time was over, Hansen scored his second goal of the weekend and tied the match 1-1. He accomplished this with the help of Casucci, who received the ball near the top of the 18-yard box and promptly sent it to him.
Hansen was named Tournament MVP and Offensive MVP.
"It was a good ball from Francesco," Hansen said. "I took a touch and just knew I had my guy beat. After that it was just trying to find a good contact.”
Just three minutes into overtime, the Eagles had a serious chance at scoring the golden goal, but Beaulieu made the crucial save.
The night ended five minutes later when Casucci scored the game-winner off a corner kick.
"This is was a great win," Casucci said. "I had the opportunity to score the last one, and I'm really happy because it's an accomplishment of great teamwork tonight. This is a great win."
Isabel Gonzalez is a sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on twitter @cisabelg
