The Georgetown men’s soccer team (10-4-3, 6-2-1 Big East) defeated No. 14 Creighton (11-4-2, 7-1-1 Big East) in a come from behind, overtime win on Wednesday to secure a second place finish in the Big East. Senior defender Peter Schropp scored first for the Hoyas on a free kick in the 65th minute, while sophomore forward Derrick Dodson netted the game winning goal in overtime.
The Bluejays started the game strong and nearly had a goal in the third minute when senior forward Sven Koenig got a hard shot off, which freshman goalkeeper Giannis Nikopolidis was unable to hold on to. The rebound rolled along the goal line before Schropp cleared the ball off the line to keep the game scoreless. The Bluejays had another chance in the 16th minute when redshirt junior defender Bryce Gibson forced a diving save from Nikopolidis on a shot from inside the six-yard box.
The Hoyas then went on the offensive, creating multiple scoring opportunities, the best of which came when senior midfielder Kyle Zajec’s header was saved by freshman goalkeeper Paul Kruse in the 23rd minute. Just 30 seconds later, Creighton got the first goal of the game when Sven beat Nikopolidis near post to put the Bluejays up one. The teams settled in more after the goal, and the Bluejays went into halftime with the lead.
After garnering a few chances, the Hoyas were finally rewarded when sophomore midfielder Jacob Montes was fouled just outside the box in the 64th minute. Schropp took the free kick and sent the ball flying into the bottom left corner outside of Kruse’s reach to tie the game at one.
Creighton got a chance to take the lead back in the 72nd minute when Koenig forced another diving save from Nikopolidis, but the freshman goalkeeper stepped up to the plate, and would not allow another goal for the rest of the night.
At the end of regulation, the score was knotted at one, but it would not remain so for long. Just two minutes into overtime, the Hoyas were awarded a corner kick. Zajec took the kick, placing it perfectly in the box. After bouncing off a Creighton player, the ball landed at the foot of Dodson, who put it away on a first time shot to the near post.
With the win, the Hoyas secure second place in the Big East behind Creighton, and bye in the Big East tournament. They’ll return to action on Wednesday, November 7 to host the winner of the quarterfinal between Providence (9-6-2, 6-2-1 Big East) and St. John’s (7-3-3, 3-3-3 Big East). Follow @GUVoiceSports on Twitter for more men’s soccer updates and coverage of Georgetown sports.
