Spicer's last second heroics in men's soccer lifts Tigers above Eagles, 3-2

As the seconds bled off the clock at the end of the men's soccer team's game against American, a feeling of deja vu crept over the Tigers. So many times in this season they have neared the end of regulation tied, and so many times they have quietly accepted their fate and gone into overtime.

Not this time.

With the 10-second countdown just beginning, sophomore forward Ryan Rich collected the ball inside the Eagles' 25-yard line. He dribbled it down the left touchline deep into the Eagles zone, evaded two defenders and sent a low ball across the center of the goal. The ball trickled through the legs of the American defender and onto the feet of freshman forward Darren Spicer, whose redirection with five seconds remaining secured the 3-2 win for Princeton and put a stop to the Tigers' four-game losing streak.

Spicer's goal completed the comeback for the Tigers, who found themselves behind, 2-1, at halftime.

Princeton (2-5-2 overall, 0-2 Ivy League) dominated the opening minutes of the game, controlling the ball and taking its share of shots. The early pressure finally paid off when junior captain Jeff Hare out-jumped his defender and headed the ball across the goal from the right side to waiting sophomore forward Adrian Melville. Melville got his head on the high cross and the Tigers were up, 1-0, with 31:40 remaining in the first half.

"We moved Hare up and he's great at getting his head in there and making contact," head coach Jim Barlow '91 said. "That goal was the result of a lot of hard work by our guys."

The lead would not last long, however, as the Eagles got on the board only three and a half minutes later.

An American forward crossed the ball to the center of the goal from deep in Princeton's territory. A Tiger defender tripped, leaving the door open for American sniper Andrew Herman. Herman powered the ball past sophomore goalie Erik White's outstretched right hand, tying the game at one apiece.

The ball was knocked around the middle third for the next fifteen minutes, when American once again gained control.

After a Tiger defender was whistled for a foul just outside the 18-yard line, the Eagles were awarded a direct free kick. American's Sean Kuykendall was able to arc the ball around the Princeton wall and into the goal to give the Eagles the lead at halftime.

"We were frustrated at halftime," Barlow said. "We had great chances in the first half and we only put in one, then we had two lapses in the backfield where we've been struggling with little mistakes all year.

"I thought 'here we go again, are we going to find a way to lose this one?'"

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Luckily for the Tigers, they found a way to win.

The comeback began with another goal scored off a header. In a mirror image of the first goal, the ball was sent in high from the left side. This time it was senior forward Matt Douglas who soared above his defender and scored on a header with 40:32 remaining in regulation.

With Spicer's last-second goal, the Tigers' hard-earned win was complete.

"It really showed the character of this team that the guys were able to pull together in the last few seconds and get the win," Barlow said.

The victory over American comes exactly at the midpoint of Princeton's season. With five of the Tigers' remaining eight games coming against Ivy League opponents, it is crucial that they continue their winning ways if they want any shot at the Ivy League title.