DENVER – Junior midfielder
Kengo Ohira's first goal of the campaign in the 80
th minute brought the University of Denver men's soccer team back from a goal down at Virginia, making
Destan Norman's second goal of the season possible in extra time to walk it off against the host Cavaliers on Monday night at Klockner Stadium.
Scoring Summary:
DEN: Ohira 80', Norman 96'
UVA: Wright 23'
Quotable – Associate Head Coach Masaki Hemmi
"I'm really proud of the boys and their performance tonight. To go across the country, less than 48 hours after finishing a league match on Saturday, and play a very good side in a very difficult place to play, and perform the way they did tonight was special. Going into overtime on short rest takes a lot of grit and commitment, and I couldn't be more proud of our effort.
The tactical adjustment we made at halftime takes high focus and attention to detail and the way they executed it was fantastic and earned them a well-deserved win tonight."
Inside the Box Score:
Denver outshot UVA 13-6 on the night, including 6-2 on target, and took seven of the nine corners in the match.
First Half:
Denver controlled the opening 20 minutes, defending well on one end and creating several chances in their attacking third, outshooting Virginia 6-1 in the first 10 minutes, including three shots on goal.
The Pioneers best chance of the opening stages of the game came in the seventh minute when Ohira had his well-struck chance from inside the area stopped by goalkeeper Holden Brown.
Stefan DeLeone was the first to the rebound, but it was blocked in-front by a sliding Virginia defender and out for the Pioneers first of five corner kicks in the first half.
However, Virginia struck first on its first opportunity of the evening in the 23
rd minute, through a contested header from Daniel Wright. Paul Wiese and Leo Afonso earned assists on the Cavs opener.
Denver continued to put the pressure on the Cavs in the first half, outshooting the home side 7-2 in the first half, including 3-1 on target, but Virginia carried the 1-0 lead into the break.
Second Half:
With Denver coming off a match less than 48 hours prior and Virginia having played on Friday night, the first 20 minutes of the second half were much calmer than the opening 20 minutes of the match. Virginia had the only shot in the first 20 minutes, but it was blocked nicely by
Ronan Wynne and out for a corner.
After Denver started to control the chances once again in the later stages of the half, DU's equalizer did finally come in the final 10 minutes when Ohira netted his first of the campaign and the seventh of his Pioneer career, slicing his strike into the bottom corner to level the match.
Both teams had a chance to win it in the final 10 minutes, but both keepers made saves down the stretch to send the match to extra time.
Norman had the best look at the winner for the Pioneers in the 86
th minute, taking a couple touches before firing low toward the bottom left corner and having his shot stopped by Brown and out for a corner.
Asparuh Slavov had a go for the winner for UVA from just outside the box, but it was the centerback Johnson for the Pioneers who dove to head it away and out for a corner.
Will DeSantis' only save of the night came on the ensuing corner in the 89
th minute.
Extra Time:
Norman's second goal of the campaign and the third goal of his career proved the difference on Monday night. Norman received the ball 35 yards away from goal, and took a couple touches before faking a shot from distance to get one defender off his feet. Norman then took a couple more touches before side-stepping another defender and firing a 16-yard strike into the roof of the net.
Notes:
- Jack and Sheila Weinberg Head Men's Soccer Coach Jamie Franks was at home in Denver for Monday's match after suffering an injury in training on Friday that left him unable to make the trip.
- Norman's winner was Denver's first extra-time winner since the Pioneers defeated Creighton 1-0 on October 2, 2018, courtesy of Stefan DeLeone's 105th minute strike.
Up Next:
The Pioneers return home this weekend to take on Stanford on Saturday evening. Kickoff is set at 4 p.m. MT.
Tickets:
Denver men's and women's soccer single game tickets for the 2021 campaign are on sale now, and can be purchased
here.
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