Buckeyes Play to Thrilling 3-3 Draw at No. 11 Akron – Ohio State Buckeyes

Wednesday, September 16

Akron, Ohio

Ohio State

1-4-1

Akron

4-1-1

Team	1	2	OT 3	OT 4	Final F
Ohio State	0	3	0	0	3
Akron	1	2	0	0	3

Buckeyes Play to Thrilling 3-3 Draw at No. 11 Akron – Ohio State Buckeyes

9/16/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer

Box Score

Sept. 16, 2015

Box Score

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AKRON, Ohio – The Buckeyes and Zips added another thriller Wednesday night in the 39th edition of the Ohio State-Akron Derby.

Down 1-0 at half, the Ohio State men’s soccer team battled back with three second-half goals to play to a 3-3 double overtime draw at No. 11 Akron in front of 3,889 fans at FirstEnergy Stadium-Cub Cadet Field in Akron, Ohio. With the draw, the Buckeyes move to 1-4-1 on the season, while the Zips sit at 4-1-1 in 2015.

“We were confident we could play with them after we settled down in the first half and had some chances,” head coach John Bluem said. “It was tremendous to see us finally get on the board early in the second half. It was a fantastic effort tonight by our guys. I hope this instills some belief in them as we move forward. We felt like we’ve been unlucky so far this year and tonight showed that we can play at a high level.”

The rematch of the 2014 NCAA first round game that ended in a 15-round penalty shootout did not disappoint. Senior Kyle Culbertson, who began his collegiate career with the Zips, notched a goal and an assist in the contest, while junior Danny Jensen scored his first goal of the year. Freshman Abdi Mohamed had a memorable night with his first collegiate goal. Junior Yaw Amankwa and sophomore Hunter Robertson both had assists for the Scarlet and Gray.

“I thought we had a better performance tonight and it was good to see the fight in the guys after being down early,” Culbertson said. “It was a little weird at times being back here but it was great atmosphere. I love playing for Ohio State with this group of guys.”

Akron struck the scoreboard first in the eighth minute when Sean Sepe chested a shot into goal following a near cross from the corner of the box. The Zips’ score would be the lone goal in the first 45 minutes, but that wouldn’t last long.

The Buckeyes rallied with two second-half goals in the opening ten minutes to take a 2-1 lead. Jensen claimed the equalizer in the 48th minute after gaining possession on a loose ball in front of net. Culbertson tossed a long throw-in and was credited with the assist. Six minutes later, Culbertson struck a shot into the upper left 90 from 13 yards out at 55:15 to give the Buckeyes the one-goal lead. Amankwa set up the scoring play when he played the ball back to Culbertson from the far corner.

The back and forth battle was just beginning.

Akron answered 13 minutes later to it at 2-all when Tyler Sanda slid in a goal in front of net at 68:46. The Buckeyes regained the lead, 3-2, less than a minute later when Mohamed blasted in his first career goal off a rebound from 12 yards out at 69:34.

“We have a lot of belief in Abdi and we think he is going to be a really good player for us,” Bluem said. “He struck a wonderful ball.”

But Ohio State couldn’t keep its lead for long as Adam Najem tied the contest at 3-all at 76:43 with a header from five yards out to force overtime.

Marcus McCrary had the team’s best chance overtime, but his shot from eight yards out was saved by Fenlason at 91:16. Jensen made a strong run down the right side moments later, but Fenlason came out of the keeper box to deny the opportunity. Culbertson had a shot on goal at 102:56 but was saved. A last-second chance by Akron on a corner was cleared away by the OSU defense.

Goalkeeper Chris Froschauer had a season-high six saves in the contest, including three in the overtime periods. He sits at 1-4-1 on the year. Overall, shots were 24-13 in favor of the Zips, while Akron held an 11-10 lead in corners. The Buckeyes garnered a game-high eight shots on goal.

Ohio State opened the match with three solid opportunities off corners, but couldn’t find the back of the net. Tyler Kidwell headed in a shot off the first corner, but was saved in the third minute. Kenny Cunningham then headed a shot off the crossbar in the fourth minute. Kyle Culbertson struck a shot from distance, but it just went wide of net.

Froschauer kept it a 1-0 contest when he made a big save from his knees in the 30th minute. The Buckeyes had one final chance in the first half after a free kick was given from 30 yards out to Liam Doyle, but his bending shot was saved at the near post by Fenlason.

“Kyle has unbelievable heart and he refuses to lose,” Bluem said. “He’s a great leader and it showed tonight with his play in this great series. It’s always a good game between Ohio State and Akron and people flock to see it. It was great to see Kenny Cunningham come back up to northern Ohio too after redshirting last year. He did a good job for us.”

The Buckeyes will next prepare for No. 13 Penn State at 3 p.m. ET Sunday at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium. The Big Ten match marks the first of three-consecutive home games. As always, admission is free.