By Stan Caldwell
stanmansportsfan.com
Joaquin Ruiz Cabella showed a flair for the dramatic for William Carey University Wednesday afternoon in the quarterfinal round of the NAIA Men’s Soccer National Tournament.
Cabella scored a game-winning golden goal just one minute into overtime, propelling the Crusaders to a hard-fought 2-1 triumph over Cardinal Stritch University (Wis.) at the Orange County Great Park Soccer Stadium in Irvine, Cal.
The win puts top-seeded Carey (20-0-1) into the semifinal round at 6 p.m. Friday against Missouri Valley. No. 9 CSU finished 20-3.
For the third consecutive game, the Crusaders fell behind 1-0, and this time it almost came too late to rally. Carey and the Wolves battled hard for 75 scoreless minutes before Cardinal Stritch scored at 76:15.
The goal came on a free kick by Payton Aranda after Crusader senior defender Joe Guinchard was whistled for a foul and was shown a yellow card, the third of the game for Carey.
But just over two minutes later, two unlikely heroes stepped forward to tie it up for Carey, when senior midfielder Johnny Buckle and sophomore midfielder Ethan Loftin teamed up for a goal at 78:31. It was just Buckle’s third goal and Loftin’s fifth assist of the season.
That turned the game around in Carey’s favor, as the Crusaders had several chances to score a go-ahead goal in the final 10 minutes, after the Wolves had had the better of play for most of the second half.
And in the first minute of the overtime period, two reliable Spaniards, Pablo Varela Vasquez Frago and Cabella, delivered the goods. For much of the season, it has been Cabella, with 22 assists this season, feeding Frago, who has 12 goals.
But this time it was Frago setting up Cabella for his 13th goal of the season at the 91-minute mark, bringing the game to an end and sending the Crusaders into celebration.
Fifth-seeded Missouri Valley (17-3-3) also needed overtime to score a 2-1 victory over No. 4 Rio Grande (Ohio) in its quarterfinal match.
GAME SUMMARY
NAIA Soccer National Tournament
Quarterfinal Round
Wednesday at Irvine, Cal.
MEN
William Carey 2, Cardinal Stritch (Wis.) 1 (OT)
CSU 0 0 0 – 1
WCU 0 1 1 – 2
CARDINAL STRITCH (20-3-0): Payton Aranda (Unassisted), 76:15. GK – Pablo Ortiz, 5 saves. YC – Payton Aranda, 55:09.
WILLIAM CAREY (20-0-1): Johnny Buckle (Ethan Loftin), 78:31; Joaquin Ruiz Cabello (Pablo Varela Vasquez Frago), 91:00. GK – Josh Carpenter, 5 saves. YC – Johnny Buckle, 55:09; Guilherme Avila, 62:21; Joe Guinchard, 76:11.
