LA PLUME, Pa. – A senior-to-senior connection had the Ursinus College men's soccer team on the cusp of its first win of the season, but the Bears were forced to settle for a 1-1 draw as host Keystone found an equalizer with under two minutes remaining in regulation.
Derek Rudy slotted home a well-taken corner kick by Justin Molyneaux to give Ursinus (0-9-3) a lead in the 62nd minute before Keystone knotted it for good with 1:58 to play. The Bears played into a second overtime session for the fourth time this year.
The Bears were under fire early. Keystone fired off four shots in the first nine minutes, but senior goalkeeper Brandon Lillian was in good position to save two of them and got some help from the post on a blast by Daniel Zuniga in the 9th minute.
Ursinus got off its first shot in the 20th minute, when sophomore Braden Burns forced a save from Marcelo Polar. The Bears gradually found a foothold in the match, spending much of the latter stages of the stanza camped in the Giants' end. Sophomore Jacob Helwig and freshman Aiden Cooper got their heads on crosses, with Cooper's going just wide off a short free kick from the left wing, and Molyneaux fired over the bar before the squads went into the break scoreless.
The Bears found their breakthrough in the 62nd minute, when Molyneaux won a corner. The senior sent an in-swinger to the back post that landed perfectly for Rudy to roof a one-timer, giving the visitors a hard-earned upper hand.
The goal marked Rudy's first of the season, and likewise for Molyneaux's assist.
Ursinus caught a huge break in the 73rd minute, as a shot by Kouassi Kouadio from a tight angle in the left side of the box clanged off the cross bar and then off the post but somehow stayed out of the net.
Moments from victory, the Bears were left on level ground when Andrew Lupinacci equalized with just 1:58 remaining. Keystone had a chance to snatch a last-minute winner, but senior John Romero did well to block a shot by Kouadio, who had gotten around Lillian and was attempting to send a long shot into an unguarded net.
Ben Amaral nearly had a golden goal about three minutes into the first extra session, but Polar dove to his right to deny the senior's rolling effort after a cross from the end line found him just outside the six-yard box.
Keystone had slight edges in shots (14-10) and corner kicks (7-4) in an evenly contested matchup. Lillian finished with two saves and Polar had three for the Giants.
The men's soccer team takes on Muhlenberg in Centennial Conference action on Saturday.