Box Score
CARLISLE, Pa. – Gettysburg College and Dickinson College kept the Centennial Conference playoff picture a puzzle of possibilities with a 2-2 tie in men's soccer action Saturday afternoon.
With only a week left in the regular season, each of the top eight teams in the conference standings remained well in the hunt for the five spots available in the fast-approaching postseason tournament. Gettysburg (4-8-2, 3-2-2 CC) and Dickinson (9-3-3, 3-2-2 CC) moved into a tie with Johns Hopkins University (10-3-3, 3-2-2 CC) for fourth in the league following the latter's 2-1 loss to Franklin & Marshall College on Saturday. All three teams could be pushed back in the standings, however, with seventh-place Haverford College (7-4-2, 3-2-1 CC) battling Muhlenberg College (8-0-6, 3-0-3 CC) later Saturday evening.
After falling 2-1 in overtime to nationally-ranked York College earlier in the week, the Bullets were forced into another long contest at Dickinson, ranked sixth overall in the Mid-Atlantic Region. The hosts struck initially with Javier Mena knocking in a cross at 13:25, but just 24 seconds later junior
Teddy McCarthy (Longmeadow, Mass./Loomis Chaffee School (Conn.)) put in the equalizer for his first goal of the fall.
Gettysburg jumped out to a 2-1 advantage in short order as junior
Eric Hynes (Far Hills, N.J./Pingry School) smashed in a free kick by senior
Teddy Smith (Ellicott City, Md./Centennial) at 19:28. It was Hynes' third goal in the last four matches.
Dickinson had an opportunity to tie the contest later in the first half with a Bullet foul in the box in the 20th minute. Senior Thomas Parkinson took the ensuing penalty kick, but he was upstaged by Gettysburg freshman keeper
Connor Darrell (Cream Ridge, N.J./Allentown) who made the stop on the first collegiate penalty kick he ever faced.
The Bullets maintained the advantage for much of the second half despite facing a barrage of shots on their goal. Darrell let none get past, posting four of his match-high six saves in the period, including back-to-back stops in the 62nd and 63rd minutes.
The Red Devils got redemption with less than seven minutes remaining with another penalty kick. This time around, Darrell was bested as Dale Rodman kicked the ball into the net at 83:32.
In the extra time, Dickinson posted a pair of shots wide of the mark, while Gettysburg's
Tyler Shaffer's (Biglerville, Pa./Biglerville) final effort as time expired was saved by Cody Hickok.
Dickinson held significant advantages in both shots (18-6) and corner kicks (10-3), while the two teams combined for 38 fouls.
Gettysburg begins the final week of the regular season at home against Johns Hopkins on Wednesday, Oct. 27, at 7 p.m.
