Box Score    |    Final Stats

BELLINGHAM, Wash. – Seattle Pacific's Ryan Higgins scored with just over six minutes left in regulation Saturday to force overtime en route to a 3-3 men's soccer draw versus Western Washington in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference clash at Harrington Field.

Both teams were down to nine men during the two, 10-minute overtime sessions after the Falcons Luke Postma received a red card in the 84th minute and Julian White picked up his second yellow with seconds left in the second half.

The Vikings' Luke Olney was shown the red in the 72nd minute and teammate Brady Ulen was ejected 12 minutes later, immediately after the final SPU goal.

The Falcons (2-3-2) moved to 0-1-1 in GNAC games, the same league mark as Western (3-2-1).

After taking an early 1-0 lead on a 14th-minute goal by Mori Tsuchiya, SPU was able to equalize on two separate occasions as they found themselves down 2-1 and 3-2 in this game.

SPU started the scoring after a deflection from Vikings goalkeeper Tyler Visten. Gabe Kellum made the original push as he was able to break free and take a shot from five yards out. Visten saved the shot and Tsuchiya (Chief Sealth HS) followed up for the goal.

It didn't take long for the Vikings to counter SPU's early offense. In the 19th minute, Christian Rotter snatched a pass from goalkeeper Cody Lang. With Lang (Lewis & Clark HS) out of the goalmouth, Rotter was able to corral the ball and slip it inside the right post from 13 yards out.

In the 41st minute, the Vikings secured a corner kick and they capitalized on the opportunity. After a couple of deflections, Drew Barker slipped a shot inside the left post to give Western the 2-1 edge.

SPU answered less than three minutes later. Kellum (Rennes, France) took a shot that was deflected by Visten. Freshman Samuel Agyei, who came on as a substitute for Tsuchiya in the 32nd minute, gathered the ball and buried a shot from four yards out to forge a 2-2 tie heading into halftime.

Western earned a penalty kick three minutes after intermission and Luke Olney converted it for a 3-2 edge.

Western's Olney was issued a red card in the 72nd minute for an elbow that sidelined the Falcons Jordan Kollars with a gash that required stitches.

Playing with a man advantage, SPU was able to draw even in the 84th minute. Higgins (Issaquah HS) tallied his second goal of the year for SPU to knot the game up at 3-3. He finished from 13 yards out after a long serve from White was flicked on by Tsuchiya.

Right after the goal, Ulen and Postma were issued red cards, bringing the hosts down to nine men and the Falcons to 10.

There were five shots taken in the initial overtime, three of them by Western. The second overtime saw WWU post a 4-1 shot edge, but neither team was able to net the winning goal.

Coming into the year, SPU had not allowed three goals in one game since Nov. 6, 2013. They have allowed three goals in three separate games, including each of the last two outings.

After surrendering only nine goals during last year's campaign, the Falcons defense has allowed 14 this season through seven contests. SPU led the nation last season with a 0.45 goals against average.

The SPU men return home next week to begin a five-game homestand at Interbay Stadium. They host Montana State Billings on Thursday at 7 p.m. and Northwest Nazarene on Saturday at 7 p.m.


NCAA MEN'S SOCCER
Saturday, Sept. 24, 2016
Harrington Field / Bellingham, Wash.

Seattle Pacific 3, at Western Washington 3 (2ot)

                      1   2  OT  OT  --  TOTAL
Seattle Pacific       2   1   0   0  --    3
Western Washington    2   1   0   0  --    3

Scoring – 1, SPU, Mori Tsuchiya (Gabe Kellum), 14:00; 2, WWU, Christian Rotter, 18:08; 3, WWU, Drew Barker, 40:36; 4, SPU, Samuel Agyei (Gabe Kellum), 43:02; 5, WWU, Luke Olney, 48:10; 6, SPU, Ryan Higgins (Julian White, Tsuchiya), 83:52.

Shots – SPU 16, WWU 25.
Saves – SPU 6 (Cody Lang), WWU 5 (Tyler Visten).
Corner Kicks – SPU 1, WWU 9.
Fouls – SPU 13, WWU 12.
Offsides – SPU 3, WWU 2.
Red Cards – SPU 2 (Luke Postma 83:52, Julian White 89:50), WWU 2 (Luke Olney 71:51, Brady Ulen 83:52).

Records
Seattle Pacific 2-3-2, 0-1-1 GNAC
Western Washington 3-2-2, 0-1-1 GNAC

Next SPU Men's Game
Montana State Billings at Seattle Pacific
Thursday, Sept. 29, 7:00 p.m.
Interbay Stadium / Seattle, Wash