Garden City, N.Y. - Caelan Hueber had four total shots and made the one attempt on targe count, scoring the game-winner for the ninth ranked Adelphi University men's soccer team (11-1-1, 9-0-1 NE-10), lifting the Panthers to a 3-2 overtime victory against Southern Connecticut State University (6-5-2, 4-4-2 NE-10) tonight on Motamed Field.

The first half passed in a scoreless draw, but James Thristino was a constant thorn in the side of the Owl defense. He created multiple opportunities for the Panther attack, slipping past the Southern Connecticut State defense, controlling through balls and then sending them across the visiting goal mouth. Unfortunately, only two of Adelphi's eight first half shots found their mark and both were turned away by Noah Varonier.

The Panthers broke through early in the second half. Just over two minutes into play, Florent Girardin possesed the ball moving right to left and unleashed a vicious strike with his left foot that gave Varonier no chance, finding the upper right hand corner, giving Adelphi a 1-0 advantage.

The Brown and Gold continued to control the play and scored what was thought to be an insurance goal at the time. In the 70th minute, Alejandro Penzini struck a shot that was blocked from eight yards out and the rebound was secured by Thristino, who slotted the ball into the right side of the Owl net to afford the Brown and Gold a 2-0 margin.

The Panthers continued to cruise and the Adelphi defense turned away rush after rush from the Southern Connecticut State offense, until Zak Wright pushed a ball into the Adelphi box where it slipped through the defense. Both Spenser Powell and Alex Brown converged on the ball, but Brown was able to touch it past a diving Powell, cutting the Brown and Gold advantage in half, 2-1 with 5:37 remaining in the game.

Two minutes later, an errant pass from the Adelphi midfield was intercepted by a streaking Sabri Akter, who found himself one-on-one with Powell. Akter slipped to the side of a leaping Powell and slotted the ball into an empty net, knotting the game at two and sending the contest into extra time.

The overtime period was controlled by Adelphi, who got a great opportunity from Christian Lird five minutes in, when he hammered a shot from 20 yards out that a diving Varonier turned it aside.

The Brown and Gold kept the pressure up and scored the game winning tally in the 96th minute of play. Toni Soler sent Thristino to the end line with another well placed through ball and Thristino pushed the ball across the mouth of the goal where a streaking Hueber got enough of the attempt to redirect it into the net, securing a 3-2 win for the Panthers.

Adelphi held an advantage in shots, 22-10, shots on goal, 8-3, while the Owls managed more corner kicks, 9-7. The Panther offense proved to be plenty aggressive, earning five whistles for offsides. In all, Powell made one stop in the win, while Thristino had one goal and one assist and both Girardin and Hueber had one goal each.

The Panthers return to the pitch on Saturday, October 22 in their final home game of the regular season. Adelphi will welcome Northeast-10 opponent Saint Anselm to Motamed Field for a 3:00 pm contest.

Notes:
- Tonight's victory is Adelphi Head Coach Carlo Acquista's 98th on the Panther sideline. 
- This is Adelphi's third overtime game of the 2016 season and the Panthers are 2-0-1 in those contests.
- The Panthers are now 5-4-4 all-time against Southern Connecticut State, with their last loss to the Owls coming in the NE-10 playoffs on November 7, 2014, 2-1.

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About Adelphi University
Adelphi University joined the Northeast-10 Conference in the fall of 2009 and in the past seven seasons, has collected 18 regular season conference titles, 22 tournament championships, 29 individual crowns and captured the Northeast-10 Presidents' Cup three times (2013, 2014, and 2016), while winning five NCAA Division II National Championships.

For the latest on Adelphi University Athletics, follow the Panthers at www.aupanthers.com or via social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and Snapchat.