Oberlin, Ohio – Oberlin men's soccer came alive in the second half with two goals against the visiting Case Western Reserve Spartans, but could not pull out a victory as the two sides battled to a 2-2 draw after 110 minutes of action.
 
The first half passed by without a goal from either side despite 14 shots from the Yeomen, half of which were on frame. The best scoring opportunity for the Oberlin men came in the last minute of the first stanza.
 
Sophomore midfielder Adam Chazin-Gray attempted a left footed acrobatic shot in the 44th minute that sailed high to keep the score line level.
 
The Yeomen took aim at the Case net in the 63rd minute when the Oberlin men were awarded a free kick inside their offensive third. Senior Enzo Cabili ripped the set piece into the box but it missed the foot of a Yeoman and was saved by the Spartan keeper, Calvin Boyle.
 
In the 66th minute, Oberlin's senior goalkeeper Oidie Kuijpers made two excellent saves to keep the score deadlocked at 0-0, before Case finally broke through three minutes later.
 
The scoring opened up after Case Western earned a penalty kick on a questionable handball in the penalty area. Despite Kuijpers effort to turn away the penalty shot, Case gained a 1-0 advantage in the 69th.
 
The penalty went unnoticed by the Yeomen as sophomore Nick Wertman answered 0:22 later with his fifth tally of the year. Wertman received a long ball through the middle from freshman defender Matthew Bach-Lombardo, that he settled, dribbled into the box and tapped into the back of the twine to push the score level, 1-1.
 
Case Western found a go ahead goal in the 79th minute after a long goal kick found a Spartan that broke free of the Oberlin back line.
 
Trialing 2-1 with little time left in regulation, Bach-Lombardo connected once more with a teammate to produce the equalizer. Junior midfielder Slade Gottlieb found his first goal of the 2014 season when Bach-Lombardo played in another marvelous long pass through the middle of the Case defense.
 
Gottlieb settled the pass, dribbled passed would-be defenders and earned Lombardo his second assist of the game and moved the Oberlin men back to even, 2-2.  The clock hit 00:00 with the score level forcing the Yeomen into their second overtime match of the season.
 
After leading the shot count in the first half and tallying 11 shots in the second frame, the Yeomen were outshot, 6-2 in the first period of extra time. Kuijpers saved the match for the Oberlin men with a tremendous save in the 95th minute after Case's Brandon White earned a breakaway and was all alone behind the Oberlin back line. Kuijpers turned it away to keep the match at level pegging.
 
In the 106th minute, senior, leading goal scorer John Ingham found himself on a break away in the Spartans' defensive third. After losing a defender with a cut back toward the middle of the box, Ingham ripped a right-footed shot but Boyle stood tall to keep the Case net safe and keep the match tied until the final whistle.
 
"We fought back against adversity and showed heart tonight," said head coach Blake New.
 
It was truly a team effort for the Yeomen offensively as nine of ten field players registered a shot against the Spartans. Ingham led the Oberlin men with eight shots while Gottlieb was second best with six. Both upperclassmen finished with four shots on goal in the draw.
 
The Oberlin men now move to 4-5-1 overall and remain 1-1-0 in the North Coast Athletic Conference. Their match with Case marked the final non-conference matchup of the 2014 season as they move into conference play.
 
The Yeomen return to the pitch on Saturday, October 11 as they travel to Hiram. First touch between the Terriers and the Oberlin men is slated for 7 p.m.