Men's Soccer Earns Late-Game Victory Over Penn State - Harrisburg

Sept. 6 – TOWSON, Md. – For the second time in their three-game, season-opening home stand, the Goucher College men's soccer team found themselves in need of a late-game goal. And, for the second time, the team delivered, as junior Drew Phillips connected on a header in the late stages to give the Gophers a 1-0 win over Penn State – Harrisburg on Tuesday.

The win for Goucher (2-0-1) wraps up a highly successful home stand, as the victory comes on the tails of a double-overtime draw with Johns Hopkins (1-1), and a 4-0 triumph over Gwynedd Mercy.

The two teams played to a stalemate through the first 85 minutes of the game, before an errant backwards pass by the Lion defense set the Gophers up with a corner in the late stages.

Freshman Brandon Cohen, fresh off a hat-trick in his previous outing, placed a perfect ball toward the back post off the set corner piece. From there, Phillips, who had two game winners previously in his career, knew what to do with the ball. Phillips got his head on the pass and placed it into the upper half of the net giving the Gophers the 1-0 lead in the 86^th minute.

Harrisburg controlled the first half of the game, outshooting the Gophers by a 9-4 margin. However, Goucher was up to the task, as only four of those found their way on goal. Sophomore Daniel Hendry kept the sheet clean, however, making all four stops.

The second half was played more even, with the Gophers holding an 8-7 advantage on the shot chart. Hendry continued to play solid, making five more saves in the stanza before the Phillips' goal put Goucher in the lead for good.

The late-stage drama was the second such game for the Gophers through the first week and a half, as freshman Dalton Kraus also used a header in the 87^th minute to knot a game with Johns Hopkins and force a 1-1 draw on Sept. 1.

The Goucher defense, along with Hendry, continued to play at a high level, pitching a shutout for the second-consecutive game. Through the first three outings, and 290:00 total minutes, the Gophers have allowed just one goal.

Hendry, who was named a Second-Team All-Landmark Conference selection as a freshman, has upped his game even further during his sophomore campaign. He has allowed just one goal in 27 chances, leading the Landmark in saves (26), while posting a .963 save percentage.

The Gophers, who are undefeated through three games, have not had a better record at this stage in the season since going 3-0 in 2005, with wins over Gwynedd Mercy (2-0), Ursinus (1-0) and Neumann (2-1).

Goucher will face their first road test of the season when they travel to Rosemont on Friday, September 9. The matchup with the Ravens is scheduled for a 5 p.m. start.