Dukes Draw 2-2 With Howard In Third Straight Overtime Game

Wednesday, October 7

Harrisonburg, Va.

7 p.m.

James Madison University

2-6-3

Howard

0-10-2

OT 3

OT 4

Howard

James Madison

Dukes Draw 2-2 With Howard In Third Straight Overtime Game

10/7/2015 10:00:00 PM | Men's Soccer

Box Score

HARRISONBURG, Va. - Completing its third straight overtime game, James Madison men's soccer played to a 2-2 draw with the Howard Bison in its final non-conference bout of 2015 on Wednesday evening at University Park.

JMU dominated shots in regulation, outshooting the Bison 5-1 in the first half and 6-2 in the second half before things evened out at 4-4 in the overtime periods. The Dukes also earned more set piece opportunities, taking seven corner kicks to Howard's three.

The Dukes (2-6-3) held a 2-1 lead into the 88th minute when Howard (0-10-2) forward Kyle Celestine moved down the left flank and fired past redshirt-junior goalkeeper Kyle Morton for the game-tying goal. The ensuing overtime periods saw limited chances for either team.

Speeding up play in an attempt to strike following a scoreless first half, the Dukes broke through in the 50th minute. Fighting off two defenders, redshirt-freshman midfielder Billy Metzler won the loose ball at the top of the box and played it in to freshman Thomas Shores, who slotted a right-footed shot into the back of the net to put the Dukes up 1-0.

James Madison then doubled its lead in the 57th minute when Metzler collected his second assist of the game, playing a ball over the top to redshirt junior Connor Coward, who took two touches and smoothly finished past the diving goalkeeper. The Bison began their comeback effort 14 minutes later when Xavier Rajpaul sent a free kick into the box, where he connected with Iasaac Mbappe for the header goal.

The Dukes return to action on Saturday, Oct. 10 when they travel south to take on Colonial Athletic Association foe College of Charleston. The match is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.

NOTEWORTHY
After starting the season 0-5-1, the Dukes have lost only one game in their last five, going 2-1-2 in that span.

HIGHLIGHT OF THE NIGHT

COACH'S QUOTE
"We weren't where we wanted to be in the first half," Head Coach Tom Foley said. "We tried to correct some things at halftime, I think we dominated the beginning of the second half, but we lost our way a little bit and Howard was able to take advantage."

NEXT UP
In a series that only began two years ago, James Madison and the College of Charleston are tied 1-1 in the all-time series history. The Cougars won 3-0 in Charleston on Oct. 30, 2013 before the Dukes came away with a 2-0 victory on Oct. 22, 2014 in Harrisonburg.