FINAL SCORE (OT): Vermont 1, Bryant 1 (Bryant wins PK's 4-3)
BURLINGTON, Vt. – 110 minutes wasn't enough to decide a winner on Wednesday night from Virtue Field as two-seeded Vermont (10-2-5, 4-1-2 AE) and three-seeded Bryant (12-2-5, 4-1-2 AE) went the distance to penalty kicks during the America East Semifinal match. The Bulldogs pulled away in PK's, winning 4-3, punching their ticket to the America East Championship.
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Box Score
COACH'S QUOTE
"First off I want to give congrats to Bryant, that's a really good team and they're very well organized, Coach Resendes has done a really good job there," said Head Coach Adrian Dubois. "Their game plan was to sit low, stay organized and give us the ball. They did a really good job at denying our chances and limiting our chances. We did create some really good opportunities; we just couldn't put it in the back of the net.
"The next couple of days its take a break," continued Dubois. "Physical recovery, mental recovery, let's get some clarity and get the boys a little time off. Nothing really changes, now we're hungrier and excited for some wins in the NCAA Tournament."
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Both teams battled to find an opening in each other's defense for the opening 40 minutes, but it was Bryant that orchestrated the first prime scoring opportunity in the 42nd minute. Pablo Maya unleashed a shot from well outside the 18-yard box with his right foot, sending the ball towards the top right corner, but Niklas Herceg was there to make a diving save, punching the ball out of bounds and out of harm's way.
- After the first 45 minutes of action, the match was sent to halftime with a 0-0 score. Vermont recorded one shot on goal to Bryant's three.
- The Catamounts opened scoring in the 52nd minute when Santiago de Prado committed a foul against Mark Isong inside the 18-yard box. David Ismail took the penalty kick for Vermont, pinning his shot to the bottom right corner, securing his eighth goal of the season, earning the Catamounts a 1-0 lead.
- Bryant found an equalizer in the 61st minute of play thanks to Manu Morillo scoring his second goal of the season, knotting the score at 1-1.
- Vermont rallied off three prime shots in the final 15 minutes of play, but all of them just went wide or high. Ultimately, 90 minutes wasn't enough to decide a winner, sending the semifinal match to overtime.
- After two different ten-minute overtime halves, the match was still knotted at 1-1, sending the two teams to penalty kicks.
- The difference in the penalty kicks was on Vermont's second attempt, seeing Ramon Camejo stuff Luis Fischer's attempt at the bottom left corner, earning Bryant the advantage.
- On Vermont's fifth attempt, Halim Bangura needed to score to extend the penalty kicks, but his attempt missed high as the Bulldogs secured the PK win, advancing to the America East Championship match.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Ismail scored his eighth goal of the season and led a game-high two shots on goal.
- Herceg made three saves against Bryant on Wednesday.
- UVM outshot Bryant 16-11, but the Bulldogs pinned four on goal to Vermont's three.
- This was the third consecutive season Vermont and Bryant went head-to-head in the America East Tournament.
For news and updates about the Vermont men's soccer program, follow @UVMmsoccer on Instagram, X, and Facebook, and visit UVMathletics.com.
EastRise Credit Union is the presenting sponsor of Vermont soccer.
