LATROBE, PA – The Juniata men's soccer team battled the St. Vincent Bearcats into a double overtime in their season opener Tuesday afternoon. The Eagles took the win when Adam Heller (Rockville, MD / Colonel Zadak Magruder) took the rebound off the keeper and sank a shot into the lower left corner of the net for a final score of 1-0.
Reese Fisher (State College, PA / State College Area) took the initial shot that led to the rebounded goal.
Juniata and St. Vincent kept each other on their toes during the entire game. The Eagles had a 17-15 advantage in total shots and a 9-8 advantage in shots on goal.
Juniata's depth came in handy during the double overtime game. 20 players got time on the field during the match.
"Every guy that came on the field stepped up," head coach Dan Dubois said. "The depth on this team is amazing. Everyone contributed. They were tired but they stuck together and followed their training."
James Johnson (Cumberland, MD / Fort Hill) got the start in goal for Juniata. Johnson played the first half and made five saves. Achim Schwemmlein (NRW, Germany) was between the posts for the remainder of the game, made three saves and was credited with the win.
Fisher, Steven Stroup (Bedford, PA / Bedford) and John Miller (Doylestown, PA / Central Bucks South) lead the Eagles with two shots on goal apiece.
Juniata played hard throughout the entire match but they saw everything come together when Aaron Kulig (Green Lane, PA / Boyertown) made a long corner kick that went all the way across the box. Fisher took the initial shot but St. Vincent's Jon White deflected it. Heller took the rebound, sunk the shot and won the game for Juniata in the 102nd minute.
The Eagles head to Frostburg, MD this weekend for the Frostburg Tournament. They play Bridgewater (VA) on Sat. Sept. 5 at 7PM, and Centenary (NJ) on Sun. Sept. 6 at 1PM.
