Box Score
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – In the program's home opener at the Turley Athletic Complex, Eckerd College men's soccer senior goalkeeper
Toni Virtanen ultimately preserved a scoreless final in a double-overtime draw against Warner University on Tuesday night, 0-0.
Virtanen denied a penalty kick attempt by Warner's Diego De La Fuente in its tracks with 22.8 seconds remaining on the clock in the second overtime session. The senior guessed to his right, dove in that direction and instinctively deflected the rocket shot off his padded gloves as time expired.
De La Fuente's penalty kick was set up due to a hand ball whistled in the box just moments prior.
The Tritons (1-1-1, 0-0-0 SSC) returned home after playing their first two games of the season in Alabama. The Royals (1-2-1, 0-1-0 TSC) were coming off a matchup against Florida Southern College just three days ago.
With 110 minutes officially gone final, the Eckerd offense manufactured a pair of memorable opportunities that nearly ended the game in its sudden death format once regulation ended in a scoreless tie.
Junior forward
Matt Dolan, bracketed all night by a pair of lanky 6-2 and 6-1 defenders, shook free for a header that drifted just wide left and fell just short of sneaking inside the far post in the first overtime.
Also in the first overtime, sophomore forward
Joe Swindell emerged from a pack of Royals' defenders following the first ball headed by junior
Nick Murawski and the second ball headed again by Dolan in succession.
Swindell had green in front of him, but Warner goalkeeper Leo Viala stormed out of the box to smother the ball before he had a chance to shoot.
Viala made six saves on the night while Virtanen finished with four, none bigger than his final stand in net.
Junior defender
Marcus Lohrmann returned to action on the field after missing the first two games of the season due to illness. Senior midfielder and captain
Mark Lee was sidelined along with senior defender
Seb Marley.
Sophomore midfielder/forward
Mitchell Metzger made his first career start and played 59 minutes.
The back row defense featured a relentless on-the-ball, swarming effort by
Eduardo Juarez,
Jordan Lee,
Anthony Brenner and
Adam Stephany, along with Lohrmann and company. The Tritons had an answer for every offensive threat posed by the Royals as the defense faced a total of 19 shots on the night.
Play was chippy towards the end as a Warner player intentionally obstructed an Eckerd throw-in along the sidelines, a sequence that warranted the match's seventh of eight yellow cards issued.
The Tritons will return to the Turley Athletic Complex in one week to play host to Clearwater Christian College in the midst of a four-game homestand. Start time for the match next Tuesday is set for 7 p.m.
