RINDGE, N.H. (December 4, 2021) -- It was a golden goal for the Golden Eagles on Saturday at Sodexo Field, in the 109
th minute, as the head of sophomore Lucas Christensen sent No. 5 nationally ranked Charleston (W. Va.) through to the semifinal round of the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship. Christensen got on the other end of a cross from the left wing by sophomore Alexis Ledoux, as Charleston pulled out a 2-1 (2 OT) win over Millersville in the Super Region 1 title game and national quarterfinal, hosted by Franklin Pierce University.
With the win, second-seeded Charleston improves to 19-1-2 and advances to the semifinal round, which is set for Dec. 9 in Colorado Springs, Colo. With the loss, fourth-seeded Millersville sees its season, and the program's ninth all-time NCAA Championship appearance, come to a close at 15-6-2.
After a scoreless first half of extra time, it was a timely first goal of the season for Christensen, who was stationed at the top of the six-yard box on the play. He was able to leap and get his head to the cross from Ledoux, and redirected it into the upper-right portion of the net with just 1:15 remaining in the second overtime. Christensen and Ledoux met in celebration to the left-wing side of the goal and were mobbed by the rest of their Charleston teammates in short order.
Earlier on Saturday, as it had in Thursday's third round game, Millersville opened the scoring. In the 42
nd minute, sophomore Bob Hennessey swung a cross into the box from the right side. The service found the foot of freshman Richy Valverde for the one-touch finish in front of the left post, as Valverde scored his third of the season.
Also as they did on Thursday, the Marauders tried to park the bus after taking the lead, only to surrender a second-half equalizer. A foul in the box resulted in a penalty kick for Charleston, which senior Gabriel Rodriguez stood over. Rodriguez slotted the kick into the lower-left portion of the net for his 12
th goal of the campaign, which set the stage for Christensen's extra-time heroics.
Sophomore Marc Torrado (11-1-2) finished with one save against two shots in the win for Charleston. Junior Bobby Bosch (10-3-2) stopped three of five shots in front of the Millersville net in the loss.
Photos Link:
https://fpuravens.com/sports/msoc/2021-22/photos/0008/index