By Andrew Snyder
Sports Information Intern

SPRING ARBOR, Mich. — After conceding a first-half goal, the Goshen College men's soccer team came away with a 1-1 draw against 24th-ranked Spring Arbor in Crossroads League action Saturday night at the Cougar Soccer Complex.

The hosts opened the scoring in the 18th minute with a set piece from just outside the penalty area. Morris Kamara received a pass from the free kick, which he played back to teammate Lewis Jones near the near post. Jones then slotted the ball back across the goal mouth, where it was deflected before Mitchell Simon tucked it away into the bottom right corner.

The scoreboard still read 1-0 nearly half an hour later when the first half ended. Spring Arbor (9-2-3, 3-0-2) racked up 11 shots and two corner kicks in the first half while preventing the Maple Leafs from registering either.

Coming out of the halftime break with a much simpler game plan, Goshen (4-5-4, 2-2-1) slowly picked up momentum but was stifled in the final third by a strong Cougar back line. However, with just under three minutes showing on the clock, the Maple Leafs earned a free kick from the midfield logo.

Sophomore Nate Nussbaum drilled the ball towards the top of the six-yard box where a mass of Cougars and Maple Leafs was assembled. That ball caromed off a Spring Arbor defender and into the top left corner for an own goal to equalize at 1-1 with 2:37 remaining.

With neither team scoring again in the final moments, a Goshen match entered overtime for the fifth time this season. Buoyed by the unexpected momentum boost, GC nearly matched its shot total from the first 90 minutes in the subsequent 20 minutes of unscheduled soccer. The Cougars tallied eight shots as well, but when neither team scored, the match ended in a 1-1 stalemate.

Spring Arbor finished with 30 shots to Goshen's seven and took nine of the match's 11 corners. Of the Cougars' nine apex restarts, eight came from the right side of the goal. Goshen sophomore goalkeeper Johan Escalante made five saves while his SAU counterpart, Cobi Piper, made three.

The draw was Goshen's fourth of the season, one shy of the program record set by the 1989 club that went 8-6-5. The 1-1 result also mirrored the scoreline of head coach Arron Patrick's first visit to Spring Arbor two years prior, one in which the hosts finished with a 32-3 shot edge.

Goshen returns to the field on Wednesday to finish its two-game road trip with a visit to Taylor. Kickoff at Turner Stadium in Upland is set for 7 p.m. with pregame coverage beginning at 6:45 on 91.1 The Globe.