Box Score

GETTYSBURG, Pa. – A back-and-forth battle between two long-time rivals came right down to the wire with Dickinson College earning its first victory over Gettysburg in four years with a 2-1 decision in Centennial Conference men's soccer action at Clark Field on Saturday.

Dickinson (11-3-1, 5-2-0 CC) had not defeated Gettysburg (7-6-2, 3-4-0 CC) in the last four meetings between the teams, with three ties and a 6-0 victory by the Bullets in 2007. The Red Devils capitalized on an opportunity in the opening minutes as Ben Gemberling-Johnson blasted a loose ball near the right side of the 18 into the back of the net at 8:42.

Both teams failed to convert several scoring opportunities throughout the remainder of the first half and the beginning of the second. In the 53rd minute, David Lister corralled a rebound in front of the goal and took a stab at the left side of the net, but senior Rich Kampert (Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks West) stopped the shot and sent it out of the scoring area.

The Red Devils picked up their second goal in the 60th minute when Tyler Meade fielded a pass out of the midfield by Tim Rahauser and crossed it in front of the Bullet goal to the right post. The perfectly placed pass found Nicolas Tierno for a header and his 10th goal of the fall.

Both teams fired away in the second half and combined for 28 shots in the stanza. Freshman goalie Mike Walmer (Hershey, Pa./Hershey) made several point-blank stops en route to a match-high six saves for Gettysburg.

In the final five minutes, Gettysburg made a push up the field with sophomore Kyle DeBlois (Cranbury, N.J./Princeton) sending a cross from the left side of the field to the right side. The ball somehow made its way through the defense unscathed to Ben Tabor (Kinnelon, N.J./Kinnelon), who moved up several yards unimpeded and rocketed a shot past the Dickinson keeper to pull the hosts to within one at 86:15.

Gettysburg looked like it was going to tie the match in the 88th minute when Dickinson goalie Cody Hickok jumped out to grab a ball, but had it kicked away by DeBlois. With defenders bearing down and the keeper out of position, DeBlois slotted a shot from just inside the right side of the box that hit the side of the net.

Dickinson finished with 24-18 and 6-3 advantages in shots and corner kicks, respectively.

Senior Geoff Menge (Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks West) posted five shots and DeBlois finished with four to lead the Bullets.

The Red Devils were led by Meade and Tierno with seven and five shots, respectively.

Gettysburg resumes action on Wednesday, Oct. 28, with a road trip to Johns Hopkins University. The match is set for a 4 p.m. start.