Men's Soccer Starts Conference Play with 1-1 Tie vs Alvernia

Boxscore (box score) / (video highlights)

Senior defender Cody Schulte (White Hall, MD) scored the game-tying goal in the 63rd minute as Widener opened up Commonwealth Conference play with a 1-1 tie against Alvernia at Leslie C. Quick Jr. Stadium.

Widener (5-4-2, 0-0-1 CC) controlled the ball for most of the first half, however in the 30th minute Alvernia made a break with the ball and following a foul was awarded a free kick five yards outside the Widener box. Cody Shirk took the kick and curved the ball around the Widener defensive wall. Senior goaltender Jakub Valdner (Bratislava, Slovakia) got his hands on the ball but could not redirect the ball away from the goal as the Crusaders took the 1-0 lead.

The second half was a more back and forth game as Alvernia brought in many players from off the bench. Widener's offense was getting opportunities to score but in the end it was defender Schulte who came through with the game-tying score for the Pride.

The play began when Widener was awarded a throw-in deep in Alvernia's territory. The throw of senior Matt Montera (New City, NY) reached all the way to the Alvernia crease, where goalkeeper Dan Ardekani could not reach it, the ball ricocheted off an Alvernia defender and Shulte was able to poke the ball into the right side netting for his first goal of his collegiate career.

With 20 seconds left in regulation, the Pride almost came away with the victory when freshman Max Reid (Munich, Germany) headed the ball off a long cross that just went wide right of the goal.

The game would reach the end of the second overtime with the score remaining 1-1.

Valdner finished with four saves in 110 minutes of play.

The Pride was led in shots by Reid, junior Troy Czapor (Richboro, PA) and sophomore Eric Taylor (Bensalem, PA) each of whom had two.

Widener will next travel to Stevenson on Tuesday at 7:00 pm.

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