The only shot of overtime resulted in the winning goal as Milligan University (Tennessee) defeated the homestanding Georgia Gwinnett College men's soccer team 3-2 on Thursday afternoon in a first-round match of 2020 NAIA Opening Round at the Grizzly Soccer Complex.
Milligan (12-2), the No. 3 seed in the Lawrenceville Bracket, advances to face No. 4 seed St. Thomas University (Florida) on Saturday, April 24, at 2 p.m. St. Thomas defeated top seed Dalton State College (Georgia) 4-1 earlier in the day.
GGC completes the season with a 10-2-2 record.
The match's deciding goal came in a distant shot by Milligan's Odin Solheim in the third minute of extra time after the teams swapped leads in 90 minutes of regulation time.
The Grizzlies, the bracket's No. 2 seed, took a 1-0 lead in the 28th minute when sophomore
Diego Milessi floated a shot from the left side of the box into the upper right corner of the opposing goal.
The Buffaloes rallied by scoring twice in the first 15 minutes of the second half to grab a 2-1 lead. Solheim led the charge with a goal off Victor Castel's corner kick in the 52nd minute. Six minutes later Castel found the back of the net following a crossing pass from Inaki Moreno.
GGC junior
Karim Tmimi squared the match, 2-2, in the 77th minute after a shot deflected off the bottom part of the crossbar from close range. The two teams battled for possession during the rest of regulation.
The Grizzlies outshot Milligan by a 11-8 margin and registered seven of their shots during the second half.
In the early stages of overtime, Milligan's Odin Solheim drilled the match-winning goal on a shot into the upper left corner of the Georgia Gwinnett College goal from 25 yards away following a clearance by the Grizzlies.
28' –
Diego Milessi, GGC (unassisted)
52' – Odin Solheim, MU (Victor Castel)
59' – Victor Castel, MU (Inaki Moreno)
77' –
Karim Tmimi, GGC (
Jason Strambu,
Diego Milessi)
93' – Odin Solheim, MU (unassisted)
- The Grizzlies outshot Milligan by a 11-8 margin
- Both teams recorded eight corner kicks
- Juniors Karim Tmimi and sophomore Diego Milessi each attempted three shots for GGC
- Seven of GGC's 11 shots came in the second half
- GGC ends the 2020-21 season with a 10-2-2 record; Milligan improves to 12-2
- Georgia Gwinnett College was the No. 2 seed in the four-team Lawrenceville Bracket
- The Grizzlies have lost both of their overtime matches in NAIA national tournament play in program history
