CHESTER, Pa. – The Widener University men's soccer team battled nearby rival Swarthmore College all the way to overtime, but was ultimately dealt its second setback of the season as the Garnet netted the game winner in the 94th minute.
 
The Pride struck first eight minutes into the contest off a corner by Michael Donaghy. The first year took the kick and senior Erik Holmstrom delivered his first career goal for the Blue and Gold off a header to give Widener an early 1-0 lead. The Garnet had an answer 11 minutes later as Charley Ward delivered the equalizer to tie things up at 1.
 
The MAC Commonwealth's leading goal scorer, Sean Fatiga, regained the WU advantage in the 25th minute after beating the Swarthmore goalkeeper one-on-one to pick up his fourth score of the season. The Garnet again responded shortly after the half with a score at the 53-minute mark to lock things at 2 even.
 
Sophomore Pride goalkeeper Ryan Van Pelt turned in a stellar performance in goal, coming up with a personal best seven saves on the night - four of which came in the final 20 minutes of regulation as the Garnet fired off a flurry of 10 shots. Van Pelt and the Widener defense sucessfully fended off the late Swarthmore attack to send the match to overtime. However, it was Garnet midfielder Harrison Hotham who found the back of the net three and a half minutes into the extra period as Widener fell 3-2 to Swarthmore.
 
The Blue and Gold heads to Haverford College this weekend for the Jimmy Mills Classic, first taking on Washington College (Md.) on Saturday, September 11. Kick-off is slated for noon.