JOHNSON, Vt. – Senior captain Ryan Joy (North Montpelier, Vt./U-32) knocked home a penalty kick with 3:32 remaining the first overtime to lift Johnson State College to a thrilling 3-2 overtime victory over visiting Vermont Technical College on Saturday at Minaert Field. The Badgers move to 2-0, 0-0 North Atlantic Conference (NAC) while Vermont Tech falls to 0-1, 0-0 Yankee Conference.
Freshman Faisal Hilowle (Portland, Maine/Portland) was taken down by VTC keeper Zach Fortuna (Ludlow, Vt./Black River) drawing a red card and resulting in the penalty kick for Joy. The Green Knights backup keeper Alex Bertaeu (Milton, Vt./Milton) came into to face the PK but a perfectly place kick by Joy to the upper right corner proved to be the game-winner.
Senior Ryan Demars (Morrisville, Vt./Peoples) scored two goals on the day including the equalizer making the score 2-2 with just 3:01 left to play in regulation. Drew Steady (Milton, Vt./Milton) assisted on Demars' game-tying goal.
VTC received scores from Daniel Mujica (Caracus, Venezuela) and Hannes Fischer-Byrne (Strafford, Vt.) while Matthew Golden (Lisbon, N.H.) adding an assist.
Patrick Fuller (Stowe, Vt./Stowe) played the second half and overtime for JSC without making a save to pick up the win for JSC with teammate Ryan Belen (Northvale, N.J./Northern Valley) recording three saves in the first half of action.
Fortuna's strong effort throughout the match kept VTC in the lead for much of the day with the long keeper making 10 saves on the afternoon.
Mujica's goal in the game's 7th minute gave the Green Knight's the early lead which they would hold until the match's play of the day. Demars came up with a spectacular individual effort from the left side of the field to beat a VTC defender and blast a shot to the far post, rattling off the structure and in for score the put the Minaert Field crowd in a frenzy.
Despite holding a 18-7 advantage in shots after one half, Johnson entered the break with a tied match at 1-1.
Fischer-Byrne tapped home a slow rolling pass from Golden in the 57th minute when Johnson's Fuller committed to leaving the goal but saw a touch pass trickle past and a sprinting Fischer-Byrne get to the ball inches before both the ball going out of bounds and the trailing JSC defender for the 2-1 lead.
Demars would again bring the crowd to its feet in the 86th minute blasting home a drop pass from Steady to the left post and knotting the score at 2-2 and setting the scene for the overtime heroics by Joy.
The Badgers will move on to host Saint Michael's College on Tuesday at 4:00 pm in the next match while the Green Knights play their home-opener at 2:00 pm tomorrow versus the University of Maine-Presque Isle.