The Judson University Men’s Soccer Team won arguably one of the craziest contests in Judson Athletics history on Wednesday as the Eagles won the shootout 4-2 against Trinity International following a well-played 3-3 game after 110 minutes.
There was no score in the contest until the 55th minute when Martin Wainstein scored off a great long lead pass from Inigo Capellan to give the Eagles the 1-0 lead. Capellan scored off a rebound in the 74th minute to give the Eagles a 2-0 lead and what appeared to be leading up to a victory in regulation. However, TIU gained momentum after Matheus Duarte was sent off with his second yellow, and the upper-handed Trojans scored goals in the 81st and 83rd minutes to make the match level at two. TIU scored the first goal in overtime to make it 3-2 five minutes in, but Judson tied the game in the 100th minute when Inigo Capellan scored on a penalty kick following a TIU handball to knot the score at 3. Neither team scored in the second overtime, leading the contest to a shootout.
The sky was becoming increasingly dark as overtime progressed leading to a shootout with very little light in the sky. The tough visual conditions did not stop Mateo Ojesto from making saves on the third and fourth TIU shots in the shootout. Judson scored on three of the first four shots (Gabriel Trevisan, Capellan, Martin Wainstein) and then capped off the contest with a Christian Horstman shot that beat TIU’s goalie to the right side to give Judson the victory via penalties.
The Eagles (8-6-6) advance to the NCCAA National Championships for the 23rd time in program history and look to win their seventh national championship following a title game appearance in 2021. The tournament begins on Monday, November 28 in Kissimmee, Fla.