Daniel Donaldson ties it with :25 left in regulation; Tyler Rosa wins it a little more than a minute into double overtime

RINDGE, N.H. (September 13, 2011) – The ninth-ranked Franklin Pierce University men’s soccer team pulled off, yet, another come-from-behind victory Tuesday night as the Ravens picked up a 2-1 double-overtime win against UMass-Lowell at Sodexo Field in Rindge. The Ravens ran their record to 4-0 overall and 1-0 in the Northeast-10, while the River Hawks dipped to 1-3 and 1-1 in league play.

Three of Franklin Pierce’s four wins this season have been the come-from-behind variety, including a 4-1 triumph in the season-opener against Bloomfield and last week’s 3-2 triumph over Bridgeport.

Tuesday’s contest featured the heroics of graduate back Daniel Donaldson (Moenchengladbach, Germany) and junior back Tyler Rosa (Rehoboth, Mass.). Both players scored on header attempts with Donaldson’s tying the match and Rosa’s lifting the Ravens to victory in the extra session. Both goals came in dramatic fashion.

After playing to a scoreless first half, both teams came out firing early in the second half and UMass-Lowell eventually took a 1-0 lead in the frame’s first minute off a goal from Daniel Galvin.

The goal ignited Franklin Pierce as the Ravens responded by firing off eight shots over the next several minutes. However, UMass-Lowell goalkeeper Chris Maierle denied the Ravens on each one of those attempts.

The River Hawks settled into a nice defensive system for a majority of the remainder of the half and looked to have the win nailed down as the contest entered the final minute of regulation.

As the final seconds ticked away, Franklin Pierce gained possession of the ball and moved everyone up into the box for one final attempt at tying the match and sending it to overtime. After a scramble at the top of the box, junior back Marc Santos (East Hartford, Conn.) gathered the loose ball, dribbled to the right side of the goal and sent a crossing pass to the front of the net which Donaldson was able to get his head on to send the ball into the back of the net to knot the score a 1-1 with only :25 left. It was Donaldson’s first goal in a Ravens uniform and Santos’ first point of the season.

The crowd exploded and that emotional lift would carry the Ravens in the extra sessions. Each team had a quality scoring chance in the first overtime, but neither side could convert.

The teams came out for the second overtime, but it would only last a little more than a minute as Rosa headed in a crossing pass off a corner kick attempt from junior midfielder Paul Latif (Newcastle, England) to send the Ravens to victory. It was Rosa’s first marker of the season and Latif’s first helper on the campaign.

Rosa has become accustomed to heading in big goals at the most opportune times. The strike marked Rosa’s first goal since Sept. 19 of last season when in overtime he headed in a corner kick attempt to lift Franklin Pierce to a 1-0 win over New Haven.

Senior goalkeeper Vinny Papageorgiou (Wilmington, Mass.) made seven saves in the contest to earn the win and improve to 4-0 on the season.

Franklin Pierce outshot UMass-Lowell by a count of 14-13, including getting four shots from Latif and three from senior midfielder Diego Tabares (Seekonk, Mass.).

The Ravens return to action Saturday when they travel to Manchester to take on No. 4-nationally ranked Southern New Hampshire at 7 p.m. It marks the first road game of the 2011 season for Franklin Pierce. The Ravens return home to Sodexo Field next Tuesday when they take on No. 25 Dowling in a rematch of last season’s NCAA Division II quarterfinal.

For more information on Franklin Pierce men’s soccer, please visit the team’s page at athletics.franklinpierce.edu(.) To follow the program even further, please visit Franklin Pierce Athletics on YouTube (www.youtube.com/FranklinPierceSports), Twitter (www.twitter.com/FPUathletics) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceAthletics).