Two second-half goals allowed the Carleton Ravens men’s soccer team to erase a multi-goal deficit and escape with a 3-3 draw against the Trent Excalibur at TAAG Park on Friday.
The Ravens’ three-game win streak was snapped last night, but down 3-1 at halftime, it could have been much worse with a potential first loss of the season.
“It wasn’t the result we wanted, but at the end of the day, they’re brave in terms of trying to turn this around,” said Ravens head coach Marcelo Plada in a post-game scrum.
“They’re a very proud group.”
The Excalibur took an early 1-0 lead in the fourth minute after an unlucky bounce in Carleton’s crease fell to Nicolas Cordeiro, who tapped it in.
Both teams were getting chances, but after Trent’s Leo Frans scored an unassisted goal in the 28th minute to make it 2-0, the momentum shifted in the Excalibur’s favour.
The Ravens were looking for some sort of spark, and they found it seven minutes later when Nicholas Gagon scored off a pass from Caden Tomy to cut Trent’s lead to one.
But right before halftime, Trent’s John Moncada found himself alone with the ball in Ravens territory and pummeled it into the back of the net, silencing the crowd on Ravens alumni night.
Carleton hadn’t allowed a single goal in their past two games, but heading into the second half, they were down by two.
“I just tried to relax them a little bit,” Plada said. “I think they were overwhelmed by all the fans and alumni. It’s a big weekend for us.”
“We were disappointed, but we knew we could come back,” said Ravens midfielder Adrijan Vranjkovic. “We didn’t drop our heads because we knew as soon as we get one, the next one’s coming.”
Coming out of the half, the Ravens got exactly what they were looking for two minutes in, when Vranjkovic scored from John Aldiban’s cross to cut the Excalibur’s lead back to one.
“I saw John on the side of the box and I knew he was going to put it in and gamble for a chance,” Vranjkovic said. “It started to get momentum back and it was good for the team.”
Just like that, the Ravens’ crowd was back in the game and getting loud as the team looked to capitalize on the momentum shift.
Ten minutes later, Tomy sent a powerful ground strike from outside the box that caught a lucky bounce and went in, tying the game 3-3.
“I was a little extra excited because I haven’t scored this year,” Tomy said.
Despite multiple late chances from the Ravens, neither side could break the deadlock, and the game finished 3-3.
“We need to be a little more courageous on defending these set pieces that we face a lot,” Plada said. “A lot of teams like to hit the long ball on us and it’s about winning those 1v1s… they just weren’t ready for the intensity of that kind of game.”
With the draw, the Ravens remain unbeaten and are in third place in the OUA Eastern Conference with a 4-0-4 record, behind only the Toronto Varsity Blues.
The Ravens will head to Kingston on Sunday to play the lowly RMC Paladins who have yet to win a game.
“We have to take them seriously,” said Tomy. “If you take teams lightly, as we’ve seen throughout the season, anybody can give you trouble.”
Featured Image by Denielle Gaudet/the Charlatan
