A goal within the final 30 seconds of regulation spoiled what would have been the Eagles' first win in conference play as the No. 2 ranked Emory University men's soccer team played to a 1-1 draw at No. 12 Brandeis University Saturday afternoon in Waltham, Massachusetts.
Emory earns its second consecutive 1-1 draw in UAA action to move to 10-0-2 overall (0-0-2 in UAA play) while the Judges now have three ties on the season, moving to 8-1-3 and now stand 0-1-1 in conference competition.
Junior Lorenzo Avalos was a standout on the offensive side of the ball on Saturday as the third-year forward netted his fourth goal of the season as well as his second in as many UAA contests. Avalos also finished with a third of the Eagles' 21 shots in the game including a game-high four shots on goal.
In the 21st minute, graduate student Ignacio Cubeddu sent a beautiful looping pass over a Brandeis defender to Avalos, allowing him to take a couple steps before blasting a shot to the top shelf and off the crossbar for the 1-0 lead.
The score remained 1-0 in favor of the Eagles into the second half where Avalos had several chances to increase the Emory advantage. In the 55th minute, Avalos had a chip shot inside the save but a one-handed save prevented another score. Later in the 65th minute, he beat a Judges' defender in a one-on-one shot but fired a shot from close range over the crossbar. Avalos had one more opportunity in the 80th minute, sneaking past the Judges' backline and putting a shot from distance on target but a diving stop kept the score at 1-0.
Brandeis nearly tied things up in the 83rd minute when Aidan Chuang ripped a shot from just inside the 18 from straight on but a terrific leaping save by junior Geoffrey Halpern kept the Judges off the scoreboard.
Another Halpern save in the 87th minute maintained the one-goal edge but the Judges continued to apply pressure leading to a game-tying goal in the final minute of the game.
A defensive miscue by the Eagles allowed the Judges to counter with the clock winding down. Maddox Yu sent a pass to the far post to Keller Chamovitz who slipped one past a diving Halpern to give Brandeis the equalizer with 21.3 seconds left.
With the clock clicking towards zeros, Chuang had one last opportunity following the kickoff as he put a long distance shot on goal, but his attempt missed the left post right as the final horn sounded.
The Eagles will return home next Saturday, October 18th to host New York University in the first UAA game in Atlanta. Kickoff from the WoodPEC is scheduled for 11:00 AM.
