A chilling wind swept over the Klöckner Stadium field this past Wednesday night as 110 minutes of soccer came to a close with both teams tied at one goal apiece. William & Mary emerged victorious after the match went to penalty kicks, giving them a 2-1 win in the second round of the NCAA tournament against sixth-seeded Virginia.
"It's been the toughest loss of my career because of the way it happened," Virginia Coach George Gelnovatch said.
The game was scoreless until the 19th minute, when Virginia junior forward Alecko Eskandarian stole a lazy pass that was directed toward Tribe goalkeeper Trevor Upton. Eskandarian reached the ball just before Upton, then pushed the ball past him and slotted home the easy goal, giving Virginia a 1-0 lead.
The biggest play of the game had nothing to do with the score but with the ejection of Virginia freshman defender Hunter Freeman in the 54th minute. Freeman received two quick yellow cards at the beginning of the second half for two questionable tackles. The second yellow was followed by a red, making Virginia play the rest of the game a man down.
"Ten men down for 65 minutes is almost impossible, and you just get worn down," Virginia senior defender Jonathan Cole said after the game.
Gelnovatch was very displeased with the referee decision.
"It completely changed the complexion of the game," Gelnovatch said. "It's an absolute joke."
Virginia kept the 1-0 lead until late in the game when, in the 81st minute, William & Mary junior defender Graham Albert put the ball in the back of the net off a failed Virginia clear in the 18-yard box.
Albert's goal evened the score at 1-1 and sent the game into overtime.
Both teams stayed strong through the two 10-minute sudden death periods, but neither scored the decisive goal, sending the game to penalty kicks.
Eskandarian was the first shooter for Virginia, but Upton came up with the big save, giving the Tribe a strong start.
Two kicks later, Virginia senior keeper David Comfort made the key save to give both teams one goal going into the third round of shots.
Upton made another save against Virginia's captain, Jonathan Cole, and his save gave William & Mary the advantage going into the fifth and final round.
Virginia junior midfielder Ryan Kelly stepped up to make Virginia's final shot -- needing a goal to stay alive -- but put the ball just wide of the net, sending the entire William & Mary squad running onto the field in celebration.
"The penalty shootout is a silly thing but a necessary evil," Cole said.
"It's a tough run to get all the way through and come up short," Virginia senior midfielder Sean Feeney said.
The loss ends Virginia's run for the NCAA championship, but Gelnovatch has a positive outlook for next season, even with the loss of important seniors.
"We're gonna be young next year, real young," Gelnovatch said.
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