MEDFORD, Mass. – After 110 minutes of play yielded a scoreless draw, sophomore goalkeeper
Will Joseph came up with two saves in six Colorado College penalties to send the Washington and Lee men's soccer team past the Tigers and into the NCAA Semifinals for the second time in the last three seasons.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Senior
Evan DiPaula was the first of what ended up being 12 players to attempt a penalty in the deciding shootout. DiPaula had his chance saved by Tigers' (16-4-3) keeper Jasper Broad to the low-right corner, but Joseph picked his teammate up with a save of his own in the opening round against Charlie Wagner.
Both teams' next four players cashed in on their penalties, with W&L (15-4-5) scores coming from
Willy Hall,
Dmitri Tulloch,
Lucas Pleasants and
Weyimi Agbeyegbe, and CC goals coming from Jack Hilliard, Curtis Hale, Alex Meyerhoff and Alexander Ward. In round six of the shootout, W&L junior
PJ Ryan buried his shot to the middle of the frame, as Broad anticipated an attempt to his right.
With the shootout favoring the Blue and White by one score once again, Joseph and Rex Karjian squared off. Karjian tried a shot to the left post, but Joseph confidently dove that way as well, reached back slightly and batted the ball back towards the penalty spot to secure the Generals' spot in the national semifinals.
The first half of the game saw few offensive chances from both teams, as they combined for just five shots, three of which came from the Tigers. W&L found a rhythm after the half with a 13-5 shot margin in the second, plus a 9-1 total in extra time.
TOP PERFORMERS:
Joseph finished the 110 minutes of regulation and overtime play with three saves before his two stops in the shootout. The clean sheet was his ninth of the season. Broad ended the day with six saves plus his stop in round one of penalties.
Offensively, Agbeyegbe tallied a game-high seven shots and he put one on goal, while senior
Grant McCarty tallied four attempts and two on goal. Ward, Hilliard and Connor Webster all claimed two shot attempts for the Colorado College offense, with Ward putting both on frame.
NOTEWORTHY POINTS:
The Generals will play in the national semifinals for the second time, not only in the last three seasons, but in program history. Their 2021 appearance came at UNCG Stadium in Greensboro following a 4-0 run at Watt Field in the first two weekends of the tournament.
Joseph's ninth shutout of the season breaks a six-way tie for the second most in a season in program history. He now trails only Michael Nyc's '22 single-season record of 12 from the 2019 season.
W&L has not only gotten strong goalkeeper play across the four games in the NCAA Tournament so far, but impressive efforts from the defensive unit as a whole. The Generals have allowed just one goal in their four tournament games, tied with No. 13 Amherst for the fewest goals allowed in this season's tournament.
TEAM STATS:
W&L finished the game with a 24-9 advantage in total shots after the 22-6 edge across the final 65 minutes of play. The Blue and White also earned six corner kicks and conceded four.
UP NEXT:
The Generals will meet No. 13 Amherst in the NCAA Semifinals on Friday, December 1, at 6:30 p.m. at Kerr Stadium in Salem, Va.
W&L POSTGAME INTERVIEWS:
WILL JOSEPH FINAL SAVE SENDS W&L BACK TO FINAL FOUR:
Nestled in the mountains of Virginia, Washington and Lee University is a proud member of NCAA Division III and the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Founded in 1749, W&L is the ninth-oldest college in the United States and a top-ranked liberal arts university. With over 500 student-athletes in 24 varsity sports, the Generals have celebrated over 265 conference championships. Learn more about the Blue and White by visiting www.generalssports.com or on social media at @WLUGenerals.
