HILO, Hawaii – Alex Mejia's golden goal in the eighth minute of overtime Wednesday capped a three-goal rally for 17th-ranked Seattle Pacific, which defeated Hawaii Hilo 3-2 in a non-conference men's soccer contest at Hall Stadium.
 
Mejia was on a full sprint when he received a pass from Titus Grant on the left side of the field, 40 yards from the Hilo goal. After a lengthy dribbling run into the box, he managed to create enough space among three defenders to deliver a 14-yard shot that snuck between the goalkeeper and the left post at 97:53.
 
"Titus played Mejia in and we kind of hit them on the counter a bit," described SPU interim head coach Kevin Sakuda. "Then Mejia did what he's been doing all year. He took the players on, cut inside, got it on his right foot and had a great finish."

ALEX MEJIA GOLDEN GOAL

The senior forward maintained his goal-per-game average as he leads the Great Northwest Athletic Conference with five scores. Mejia tallied 14 career goals and five of them were game-winning strikes.
 
The Falcons (4-1-0) faced their largest deficit of the season after allowing two goals inside the first 26 minutes. They trailed 2-0 at halftime despite owning a 7-4 shot advantage during the opening 45 minutes.
 
The visitors rallied to level the score, 2-2, on goals less than three minutes apart early in the second half.
 
A Falcons corner kick bobbled around the box to Judah Johnston, who dropped a quick pass to Alden Massey 20 yards out from the center of the goal. Massey guided a left-footed, first-timer past the diving goalkeeper and inside the left post at 57:11. The goal was his second of the season and 12th all-time at SPU.

ALDEN MASSEY GOAL

Just 2-minutes, 42-seconds later, at 59:53, Travis Swallow netted the equalizer. He raced to a through ball from the halfway line that bounded into the left side of the box. Swallow reached the ball at the same time as the keeper, 12 yards from the goal, and acrobatically flipped it into the open net with the outside of his right foot.
 
That was the first goal of the season for the senior midfielder and the sixth of his career.
 
Goalkeeper Lars Helleren got the win despite not making a save as the Vulcans scored on their only two shots on goal.
 
Michael Harre was credited with six saves for Hilo, which lost the overall shots battle by a 16-5 count.

FALLING BEHIND IN THE FIRST HALF
SPU attempted four shots and controlled the early run of play. But the hosts got on the scoreboard first on a counter-attack, making good on its first shot of the contest. The Vulcans gained possession near midfield and Henrique Castilho went on a long run with the ball down the left flank. His cross found Kalei Tolentino-Perry who curved a hard one-timer into the top left corner at 21:32.
 
Hilo converted its second shot as well, also on a counter. Luca Lippert took advantage of a cross from the right wing that skipped to the left of the box because SPU defender Nik Reierson slipped on the wet field. Lippert slid a low shot past Helleren near the left post at 25:53.
 
SHOE ON THE OTHER FOOT
The Falcons can empathize with Hilo as the win helped them rebound from a similar setback, a 3-2 home overtime defeat against Colorado Mines on Saturday. SPU surrendered three unanswered second-half scores, including a golden goal, in its lone loss of the season.
 
"Obviously we were disappointed after the Saturday result," Sakuda said. "Not the best situation today to put ourselves in going down 2-0, but credit to the boys, they showed a lot of character and fought back.
 
"We told them if we can get that first one early in that second half, the momentum would change. We kept playing and creating chances. I'm really excited for the boys, it was a big win for them."
 
NEXT GAME
The Seattle Pacific men continue their three-game Hawaii trip by visiting Honolulu for a matchup with Chaminade on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. Pacific Time. They play at Hawaii Pacific on Monday at 8:00 p.m. PDT.
 
NCAA MEN'S SOCCER
Wednesday, September 22, 2021
Hall Stadium / Hilo, Hawaii
 
#17 Seattle Pacific 3, at Hawaii Hilo 2 (ot)
 
Scoring – 1, UHH, Kalei Tolentino-Perry (Henrique Castilho), 21:32; 2, UHH, Luca Lippert (Andrew Rehedul), 25:53; 3, SPU, Alden Massey (Judah Johnston), 57:11; 4, SPU, Travis Swallow (unassisted), 59:53; 5, SPU, Alex Mejia (unassisted), 97:53.
 
                     1   2  OT  --  TOTAL
Seattle Pacific      0   2   1  --    3
Hawaii Hilo          2   0   0  --    2
 
Shots – SPU 16, Hilo 5.
Shots on Goal – SPU 9, Hilo 2.
Saves – SPU 0 (Lars Helleren), Hilo 6 (Michael Harre).
Corner Kicks – SPU 5, Hilo 1.
Fouls – SPU 7, Hilo 8.
Offsides – SPU 2, Hilo 2.
 
Records
Seattle Pacific 4-1-0
Hawaii Hilo 1-2-0
 
Next SPU Men's Soccer Game
Seattle Pacific at Chaminade
Saturday, September 25, 6:30 p.m. PDT
Saint Louis Field / Honolulu, Hawaii