Even travel-weary and playing in unfamiliar territory, the Fort Lewis College men’s soccer team found a way to win Sunday.
The Skyhawks played at South Dakota School of Mines for the first time and prevailed 5-4 in overtime.
Tamino Kroeger scored the game-winner in the 100th minute on an assist from Andres Lopez, salvaging a win on a day when FLC (4-2, 2-0 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) looked far from its best.
FLC was playing two days after a win at Regis and traveled to South Dakota on Saturday.
“The travel took a toll on us. We scored early, seemed to be cruising and let them back in,” said FLC head coach Oige Kennedy in a phone interview with The Durango Herald on Sunday. “We weren’t able to keep (the ball) for long periods after we scored. It was an exciting game but more exciting than we’d have liked.”
Andres Lopez opened the game with a goal for the Skyhawks in the 12th minute on an assist from Dana Kowachek before Michael McGraw equalized for the Hardrockers in the 47th minute.
Sean Cleary regained the lead 39 seconds later on an assist from Zac Lawrence before Brandon Lind found the back of the net for South Dakota Mines in the 49th minute.
Kroeger scored his first goal of the game on an assist from Alex Kramer in the 69th minute, and that lasted for four minutes.
David Pineda tied the game at 3 in the 73rd minute.
Yannis Becker then put FLC back in front on a penalty in the 76th minute, but Pineda received his own penalty and converted with 55 seconds remaining.
Then 10 minutes into the first overtime period, Kroeger secured the victory for FLC in his second game back from an ankle injury.
“Tamino is one of our best strikers,” Kennedy asid. “He’s a real, natural goalscorer, and we signed him to score goals.”
Because of the travel fatigue, Kennedy decided to go to his bench for some youthful exuberance.
Other than Becker, all other members of FLC’s starting 11 were freshmen and sophomores.
Kowachek, Andres Lopez and Martin Lopez all made their first collegiate starts, and two of the three contributed to the Skyhawks’ scoring.
With two conference wins in the bag, the Skyhawks will return home for a full week of soccer at Dirks Field.
They’ll face Adams State at 3 p.m. Wednesday before CSU-Pueblo on Friday.
heraldsports@durangoherald.com
