After Defensive Standoff, Morgan's Goal Lifts Robinson in OT

After losing to Chantilly and tying George Mason in its past two games, No. 5 Robinson came into last night's matchup at No. 4 Yorktown seeking to regain its confidence.

And after a second half in which the Rams saw several solid goal-scoring opportunities stymied by the Yorktown defense, Robinson finally broke through when forward Brad Morgan's shot from 10 yards out beat the Patriots' keeper with 18 seconds left in the first overtime to give the Rams the 1-0 victory.

The Patriots' defense and goalkeeper C.J. Bartholomew did well to hold off Robinson's aggressive play throughout the final 40-plus minutes, but the defense allowed the ball to the top of the 18-yard box for too long as the first five-minute overtime came to a close. Robinson's Connor Alexander took a pass on the right side of the box, poked the ball through the defense to Morgan, and the senior made no mistake from close range to lift the Rams (5-2-2) to the victory.

"I didn't think he was actually going to find me and I stood there for a second and I didn't even know if I was onside at that point because I was there for so long," Morgan said. "But he finally just toe-poked it through and I was able to get a one-time turn and shot real quick and caught the keeper standing."

Both teams were without the services of their star players for most of the game, with Robinson senior defender Seth Goldman serving a one-game suspension for a red card and Yorktown All-Met center midfielder Alex Herrera arriving at the field seconds before kickoff. Herrera flew in from Italy, where he was playing with the Region I Olympic Development Program team. He entered as a substitute with just over 10 minutes remaining in regulation.

Robinson and Yorktown (10-4) both played conservatively for most of the first half, with neither squad wanting to make a mistake in the back. As a result, the attacks suffered and besides a few modest chances for each team early on, neither team really threatened.

"With the loss and the tie, we had to make a statement tonight," Robinson Coach Jac Cicala said. "And the kids did. Now we have to make sure we don't let down, we have to maintain this [confidence] because we have a heck of a week [ahead]."

No. 5 Robinson 1, No. 4 Yorktown 0 Pulling Rank: The loss is the third for Yorktown this season to a ranked opponent. The Patriots also dropped games to No. 7 Jefferson and No. 1 Westfield. Defensive: With Seth Goldman out for Robinson, captain Ted Faris and defender Jimmy Brewer stepped into bigger roles for the Rams and guided the team to their sixth shutout. No. 5 Robinson 1, No. 4 Yorktown 0 Pulling Rank: The loss is the third for Yorktown this season to a ranked opponent. The Patriots also dropped games to No. 7 Jefferson and No. 1 Westfield. Defensive: With Seth Goldman out for Robinson, captain Ted Faris and defender Jimmy Brewer stepped into bigger roles for the Rams and guided the team to their sixth shutout.