Grossman's Overtime Goal Pushes Duke Past UNCW

Tuesday, September 22

Durham, N.C.

7:00 p.m.

Duke University

UNC Wilmington

Men's Soccer Arrives to Campus on Tuesday

Grossman's Overtime Goal Pushes Duke Past UNCW

9/22/2009 11:00:00 PM | Men's Soccer

By: Duke Sports Information

DURHAM, N.C.-Duke University junior Cole Grossman scored 1:42 into the second overtime to lift the 12th-ranked Blue Devils to a 2-1 win over UNC Wilmington in non-conference men's soccer action this evening at a soggy Koskinen Stadium. The goal was Grossman's third game-winner of the season as Duke remains unbeaten at home.

Knotted at one apiece with the Seahawks after 100 minutes of action, the Blue Devils needed just over a minute more to come away with the win. Duke rookie Andrew Wenger got loose in the box and knifed his way to the endline where he slotted the ball across the box to Grossman. The junior midfielder calmly put the ball away to end the game and give Duke (5-1-0) its second double overtime victory of the season.

"In overtime I pushed farther forward and guys started buzzing around a little bit more and we were more successful," Grossman said. "In overtime I felt like we were always going to win. Overall we weren't completely in sync, but we'll take a win."

The Blue Devils controlled the game in the opening 20 minutes, creating numerous scoring chances. Unable to connect despite great looks at goal throughout the first half, Duke headed into the locker room tied at zero.

"I thought we did well in those first 20 minutes," head coach John Kerr said. "We should have been up two or three-nil. When you don't capitalize on that play and those opportunities, you allow teams to get a little confident. It wasn't our best performance tonight, but we were able to hold tight and get the equalizer. And there was only going to be one winner in overtime and that was us."

After registering no shots in the opening 45 minutes, UNC Wilmington got a great look at goal when Tyler Wheaton got loose in the box and fired a shot on frame. Duke goalie James Belshaw, however, came up with a world-class save to keep the Seahawks off the board. Anticipating the ball going in one direction, Belshaw quickly reacted the other way with his left hand and pushed the ball across the endline.

Just two minutes later, the Seahawks put a goal up on the scoreboard for the 1-0 lead. Wheaton received the ball about 35 yards from goal and took a shot. The chance deflected off a Duke defender and spun into the upper right corner.

"Once they scored that goal, the level of the game rose and made our life a lot harder than it needed to be," Kerr said. "Saying that, I thought Wilmington did a great job of making things difficult for us in the midfield. In the final third they were tough, they battled for every ball, their goalie had a good night and we weren't as sharp as we needed to be."

Trailing with 33 minutes left to play, Duke pushed forward more and raised the intensity of its game. Getting into the Seahawks' final third of the field with more frequency, the Blue Devils tied the game in the 73rd minute with a nice piece of individual work from freshman Ryan Finley. With the ball at his feet 20 yards from goal, Finley beat a couple of players to create an opening at the top of the 18-yard box. He quickly took a chance and fired the ball low into the left corner to make it a 1-1 game with 17:03 remaining.

Despite a couple of good chances from both teams in the final 17 minutes, they headed into the overtime sessions. Duke carried the momentum into the extra sessions and came away with the thrilling win.

Duke outshot UNC Wilmington (4-2-1) 23-9 for the game, including 11-0 in the first half. Belshaw finished with two saves, while Seahawk goalkeeper Brock Duckworth had 10 stops.

The Blue Devils return to action on Sept. 25, traveling to Boston College for a 7 p.m., match with the Eagles.

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