Sydney Outlasts Macon in Double Overtime
by: John Hobart ‘10Tigers finish in dramatic fashion in ODAC match-up with rival R-MC
It was a cold, rainy Wednesday afternoon but that was not going to slow down the Tigers’ domination on the soccer field. Entering the rivalry game against the Yellow Jackets of Randolph Macon, the Tigers had won seven games in a row and were 11-2 (4-1 ODAC) overall. The final outcome was a 1-0 double overtime victory for Hampden-Sydney.
Despite the close score, it could have very easily been a lopsided win for the Tigers. They dominated ball control, with Bryan Wharton pacing the attack. Behind timely passing and fancy footwork, Wharton generated many first half chances for the Tigers. He was all over the field and his early supremacy foreshadowed an epic outcome.
Wharton had chances at the 20:35 and 8:35 marks but could not quite find the back of the net. However, he and his teammates continued to give themselves opportunities. A few more near goals came as the first half came to an end. The team was hungry and the fans were hungry. Everyone knew that this was Hampden-Sydney’s game to win.
The second half was more of the same with the Tigers keeping the ball on their side of the field. Wharton presented himself with two more chances at the 18:15 and 8:49 marks after slicing and dicing through defenders, but still no scores. The fans were getting rowdy, the Yellow Jackets were getting tired, and the Tigers were starving for a goal.
At the beginning of overtime the team’s #1 fan decided it was time to put this thing away. President Chris Howard jogged over to the team to give them the extra motivation they needed to pull away for the victory. Jogging back, Dr. Howard pumped up the students with a yell of “Go Tigers!” and any doubt that the Tigers were going to win was forgotten.
The winning goal came at the 5:21 mark in the second overtime. And very fittingly, sophomore Bryan Wharton came up with the score. Hustling as he had been all game, Wharton and friends worked the ball into the box and when the goalie deflected one Wharton shot, he kicked another one right past him for the winning shot. It was quite a scene as the game’s MVP ripped his shirt off and ran around being chased by teammates. The student section joined in on the celebration and the cold was forgotten.
After a homecoming match up with Guilford at 3pm, Hampden-Sydney finishes out the season with 3 more conference games. They will hope to remain hot and carry a #1 ranking into the ODAC tournament, with quarterfinal play beginning Halloween day.
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