Trailing in the waning moments of the second half, the University of Rochester men's soccer scored on an 86th-minute penalty to knot the score at one goal apiece and eventually earn a draw against SUNY Geneseo on a rainy Wednesday evening at Edwin Fauver Stadium.
A 67th-minute corner kick gave Geneseo the lead, as the Knights converted one of their two shots on goal into the back of the net. Michael Ruggiero took the corner for Geneseo, sending it in for Jace DiPalo, who headed it into the back of the net near the back post to give the Knights a 1-0 lead.
Despite outshooting the Knights, 17-5, and 6-2 on goal, Rochester was unable to find the back of the net until its 86th-minute penalty. Lucas Lee put the Yellowjackets' first shot on goal in the fifth minute of the contest, as the 'Jackets sent a salvo at Max Crothall following a fifth-minute corner.
Lee pushed his shot past Crothall, but Samuel Leone kept the first-year's blast out of the back of the net with a team save. Pasquale Carusone's attempt on the rebound was blocked, while on the ensuing corner, Mikey Burke's header sailed wide.
Just a few minutes later, Will Fallona sailed another attempt high, while Milos Bisenic just missed on a 25th-minute free kick from a dangerous position.
The Yellowjackets would hold down Geneseo's offense for much of the first half, holding the Knights without a shot for nearly 40 minutes until Ruggiero sent a volley towards goal in the 43rd minute, but missed wide left.
The Yellowjackets forced a pair of saves by Crothall down the stretch of the first half, as David Garcia tried to beat the Knights' keeper with a right-footed shot towards the far post, while Matt Pochtar tried to scoot one inside the near post as time expired. But on both attempts, Crothall made the save, sending URochester and SUNY Geneseo into the locker room scoreless.
Things would open up a bit more in the second half, with Geneseo's Shabani Chancel putting the Knights' first shot on goal, forcing Aidan Hartman to come out of the box and make the save on a one-on-one opportunity.
Hartman's save resulted in a throw-in for the visitors, but the 'Jackets' defense kept Geneseo from getting another attempt.
Garcia forced another Crothall save in the 58th minute, before the Knights earned just their second corner of the night and finished it off to take the lead.
DiPalo's header put Geneseo up 1-0 and forced the Yellowjackets to push numbers forward over the final 20 minutes. But the Knights' defense looked like it would be up to the task, holding Rochester to just one shot on goal over the next 15 minutes as the 'Jackets continually tried to build up offensively.
A 75th-minute shot from Bisenic sailed high above the crossbar, while Sebastian Ballesteros' volley in the 78th minute was blocked, resulting in a Yellowjacket corner. Makula forced a Crothall save, resulting in another corner, but Geneseo defended it again, and took things the other way.
Rochester, though, kept up the offensive pressure, and a handball in the box in the 86th minute allowed the Yellowjackets to tie. Bisenic sank the penalty kick, knotting the score at 1-1 with less than five minutes left.
Both URochester and Geneseo would fire off shots over the final moments, but neither Ballesteros's, Makula's nor Anthony Abbondanza's attempts forced a goalkeeper save, and the final horn sounded with the score still knotted up at one-all.
Rochester picks up its first draw of the season, moving to 1-1-1 on the year, while the Knights now stand at 2-2-1.
Bisenic led the Yellowjackets with four shots and the goal, while Garcia and Makula each tallied three. In goal, Hartman made one save, while Crothall made four for the Knights.