Josh Brower scored two goals, including the game-winner in the 104th minute, to lift the Covenant men's soccer team to a 2-1 victory over William Peace on Saturday afternoon at WakeMed Soccer Park.
It was the second straight day that Covenant (7-11-1, 3-6-1 USA South) played an overtime contest after falling 3-2 at Greensboro on Friday. The win was also the first overtime victory of the season for the Scots. William Peace drops to 6-11-1 overall and 2-7-1 in the USA South.
Covenant fell behind 1-0 early in the second half after William Peace's Kevin Amaya scored an unassisted goal to give the host Pacers a lead. Less than 10 minutes later, Brower notched his first goal of the afternoon as he dribbled into the box and had his shot sneak into the lower right-hand corner of the net to tie the score at 1-1 in the 55th minute.
Both teams had a plethora of opportunities over the final 35 minutes of regulation. The Scots held a 14-10 edge in shots taken in the second half alone, but could not break the tie.
Covenant again had chances in the first overtime, taking five shots in the period, but the William Peace defense and keeper Christian Ortiz stood tall and got the match into a second overtime session. Less than four minutes into the final period, Brower headed in a pass from Isaac Johnson to give the Scots a 2-1 victory.
The goals for Brower gives him four on the year. Johnson picked up his first assist of the year.
Covenant had a 25-19 shot advantage in the match and also held a 14-3 margin in corner kicks. Jonathan Crossman made seven saves for Covenant, while Ortiz was required to make 11 for the Pacers.
Carl Simakoff led all players with his seven shot attempts, while Brower had five and Ethan Pettit three. The somewhat physical match saw five yellow cards and 30 total fouls.
Covenant will have its final regular season home match on Wednesday, Oct. 25 against Berea. Match time is scheduled for 6 p.m. Senior Night activities will take place before the contest.