(Story courtesy of Trinity University)
SAN ANTONIO, Texas - The top-ranked Trinity Tigers advanced to the NCAA Division III Men's Soccer Championship Sectionals by edging the No. 16 Texas-Tyler Patriots 4-2 in penalty kicks Saturday night in the second round at the Trinity Soccer Field.
The game was a scoreless tie after two overtime periods.
Trinity (19-2-1) will meet the winner of No. 12 Emory and Lynchburg next weekend in the round of 16, at a site and date to be announced. The two teams will play their second-round game Sunday at Emory, in Atlanta.
Tiger junior midfielder Zach Garcia made the winning shot, in
the ninth kick of the shootout. Trinity had taken a 2-1 lead, after
backup junior goalkeeper Jacob Truitt stopped an attempt by
Patriots senior midfielder Jared Taylor. Texas-Tyler junior
midfielder Justin Nesmith
closed the gap to 2-3, before players from both teams missed the
next two shots.
Texas-Tyler completed its season with a 13-3-2 mark. The Tigers beat the Patriots 3-2 last Sept. 5 in Belton, Texas, and were 2-0 winners in the second round of the 2008 playoffs.
During regulation play, Trinity led 12-9 in total shots, and held a 5-3 advantage in shots on goal.
Tiger senior goalkeeper Joe Benefield was injured in the fourth minute of play, and was replaced by Truiit. In over 106 minutes of playing time, Truitt accounted for three saves.
Patriots senior keeper Mark Oliphant made five saves in the game.
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