Mason men's soccer pulls 1-1 draw against LaSalle

Mason goalkeeper Steffen Kraus had two saves against LaSalle (photo by Gopi Raghu).

Mason men’s soccer team pulled a 1-1 draw against LaSalle on Sunday after playing through regulation and two overtime periods at George Mason Stadium.

Mason had a scoring chance in the 9^th minute when Timi Mulgrew crossed the ball into the box. Zach Herstek deflected, and Jannik Eckenrode buried the shot in the corner. However, the goal was disallowed because Herstek was offside.

In the 35^th minute, Rob Friskey found himself with an opportunity for LaSalle on a weak dribbler of a shot that barely got by Mason goalkeeper Steffen Kraus, giving LaSalle a 1-0 lead.

Despite controlling the ball for the majority of the first half and having multiple back-to-back corner kicks, Mason found themselves trailing.

The Patriots were more aggressive to start the second half, and in the 50^th minute Taylor Washington crossed the ball into the box and Eckenrode was able to put it in the back of the net.

With 16 minutes to go and the score tied 1-1, Mason had two opportunities in a row with a foul shot just outside the 18 and a corner kick, but both chances were ineffective and the game went into overtime. 

The game continued to be a physical one as LaSalle had several yellow cards awarded to them. With eight minutes left, Mason had a cross but no one was there on the back end and it went harmlessly out of bounds. In both overtimes, both teams had several chances but each defense held and the final score remained tied at 1-1.

Kraus recorded two saves for Mason in the game, while LaSalle goalkeeper John McCarthy tallied 11. Mason had eight corner kicks to LaSalle’s one, and outshot LaSalle 23-7 in the game.

The draw moves Mason’s record to 7-2-3 overall and 2-0-2 in Atlantic 10 conference play. LaSalle is now 6-6-3 overall and 3-1-1 in conference play.

Mason’s next matchup and final home game is against Rhode Island on Friday, Nov. 1 at 6 p.m. at George Mason Stadium.

Here is the postgame interview with head coach Greg Andrulis: