Longwood lost in double overtime to UNC Asheville 3-2, at the Greenwood Field on Sept. 24. The back and forth battle between the Lancers and the Bulldogs was stretched until the last two minutes of the second overtime when UNC Asheville’s senior forward Zach Joens scored the game winner in the 109th minute. The conference opening loss drops the Lancers to 3-4-1.
"I guess it wasn't our day," said Longwood head coach Jon Atkinson on the official Longwood athletics website. "We had enough clear chances to win a hatful of games, but a combination of top goalkeeping and poor finishing left the door open for a spirited Asheville team to overtake us in sudden-death.”
The Lancers came out strong and tallied the first goal of the game in the fourth minute. Longwood senior midfielder Michael Margulis finished the goal off a cross from junior defender Martin Pajunurm, marking his first goal of the season.
Although the Bulldogs had 11 shots, the Lancer defense held them scoreless in the first half.
However in the 58th minute, UNC Asheville’s Joens scored his first goal off an assist from junior midfielder Richie Lee. Longwood responded with a goal from redshirt sophomore forward Mo Jalloh in the 78th minute. Jalloh received a through ball from junior midfielder Dan Campos, who picked up his fourth assist in five games.
But then in the 87th minute, the Bulldogs equalized through junior defender Zack Compton, assisted by Joens, to force overtime.
Following the scoreless first overtime, both sides got two shots off in the second overtime. However, UNC Asheville managed to find the golden goal from Joens and secure the conference win.
"It's a painful way to end a game on the wrong end, but it is what it is, and we need to rebound quickly and get some players healthy as we start a busy conference slate and look to get back on track,” said Atkinson on the official Longwood Lancers website. “I fully believe in this team, and we have shown that we can match any team."
The Lancers will host Pittsburgh in the next match on Sept. 26 before hosting Campbell on Oct. 1.
