TERRE HAUTE, Ind. -- Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology sophomore Travis Bednarek scored with 4:32 left in the second overtime to give the Fightin' Engineers a 3-2 double overtime men's soccer win over Earlham College on Senior Day at the Engineer Intramural Field.
Rose-Hulman relied on its sophomores to build a 2-0 lead in the first half. Ryan Tarr scored both goals in a five-minute span of the first half, and both were assisted by Wyatt McKibbon. Tarr put the Engineers ahead 1-0 at the 13:52 mark, then pushed the lead to 2-0 at the 17:45 mark of the opening half.
Earlham scored late in the first half to move within 2-1 at the 38:41 mark on a score by Joel Michael Nti-Kyeremeh. The teams battled with the same 2-1 until the final seconds of regulation, until Earlham's Jeffrey Douyere forced overtime on a score with 21 seconds left.
After a scoreless first overtime period, Rose-Hulman picked up the win midway through the second overtime. McKibbon recorded his third assist of the game on a corner kick, when Bednarek finished the play to give the Fightin' Engineers their fourth conference victory.
Prior to kickoff, the Fightin' Engineers honored their six seniors that have helped Rose-Hulman earn three trips to the HCAC Tournament final and one trip to the NCAA Division III Tournament. Michael Simmons made his 52nd career appearance and has 11 career points. Will McGowen made his 51st career appearance and has 16 career points. Connor Claussen made his 16th career appearance and has scored three career points. Ross Klauer made his 55th apperance and has 16 career points. PJ Renz made his 31st career appearance and has five career points. Charles Lynch made his 68th career appearance and has 14 career points.
Rose-Hulman had control for most of the game, outshooting Earlham 14-4 in the victory. The Fightin' Engineers outshot Earlham 9-2 in the opening 45 minutes and had all three shots in the last overtime period. Tarr and Simmons led the offense with three shots each.
Rose-Hulman improved to 7-5-1 overall and 4-1 in HCAC play, while Earlham dropped to 2-10 and 1-4 in league games. The Fightin' Engineers return to action at home against Franklin College on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
