Box Score WILMINGTON, Del. – Freshman forward Real Nix (Kearny, N.J.) scored the go-ahead goal with one minute, 26 seconds, remaining in regulation time to propel Felician University to a 4-3 Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference men's soccer victory over host Goldey-Beacom College on Saturday afternoon at Nancy Churchman Sawin Field.
Felician (5-6-1, 4-3 CACC) tallied all four of its goals in the second half. Senior forward Raul Abellan (Girona, Spain), twice notched game-tying markers as the Golden Falcons completed a comeback from a 2-0 halftime deficit. Abellan finished with two goals and two assists.
Junior midfielder Eduardo Coimbra (Curitiba, Brazil) had a goal and two assists for Goldey-Beacom (3-10, 1-7).
The Lightning dented the scoreboard just 7:03 into the match, and tallied again midway through the opening period when Coimbra was on the receiving end of a longball. But after the break, Felician drew even when Ben Batson (Verona, N.J.) and Abellan found the net 93 seconds apart during the 57th and 59th minutes.
The match continued to open offensively, and each side once again leveraged an opportunity. A lead pass by Coimbra set up freshman teammate Oliver Person (Ski, Norway) to put the hosts back on top during the 64th minute. But with 20:53 left in regulation, Abellan equalized again. Sophomore forward Carlos Alonso (Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain) assisted on both Abellan scores.
Felician senior goalkeeper George Hernandez (Paterson, N.J.) made a quick-reaction save during the 75th minute, and classmate Michael Vogel (Burgkirchen, Germany) was on the spot to clear the rebound. A follow-up GBC shot went wide moments later, setting the stage for the dramatic finish.
On the game-winning play, Abellan made a takeway from a Lightning attacker, dribbled to midfield, and played a ball ahead to Nix which bounded off the foot of a defender. Nix beat both another defender and the goalkeeper, pursuing from opposite directions, to the ball and knocked it home from the top of the 18-yard box. During the final 30 seconds, GBC was awarded a free kick just past the midline. The ball found the head of Coimbra, whose attempt in traffic hit the crossbar. The Golden Falcons made the clearance and escaped with their third victory in their last four league games.
Hernandez finished with six saves to mitigate a 13-9 shot advantage for the hosts. The teams combined to attempt 17 corner kicks (9-8 GBC).
Felician hosts Bloomfield College at on Wednesday at 1 p.m. in Lyndhurst, N.J.
