Sept. 18, 2009
Lobo Men’s Soccer
What: TLC Plumbing/Nike Invitational
Where: UNM Soccer Complex
Friday: Lobos 2, UC Davis 1; Gonzaga 2, Binghamton 1
Sunday: Lobos vs. Gonzaga, 1:30 p.m.; UC Davis vs. Binghamton, 11 a.m.
Online: GameTracker; Lobo live broadcast/results on GoLobos.com
By Richard Stevens — Senior Writer/GoLobos.com
Lobo Simon Ejdemyr doesn’t do it to be the hero. Ejdemyr probably is too humble, too shy, to be a hero. But when it comes to pounding a penalty kick into a safe corner of the net the Lobos know exactly who to call — Simon.
He was seven-of-seven on career penalty kicks when he walked up to the ball Friday night at the UNM Soccer Complex with the UC Davis goalie Ryan McCowan standing tall between Ejdemyr’s kick and a probable Lobo win.
Ejdemyr walked away from the boot eight-for-eight and the University of New Mexico had a hard fought, come-from-behind 2-1 win over the Aggies from the Big West Conference. UNM plays Gonzaga at 1:30 p.m. Sunday on the final day of the TLC Plumbing/Nike Tournament.
“I just try to stay calm and composed and focused,” Simon said. “When I pick a side, I stay with it. I see it more as a responsibility than a privilege. You have to do it for the team.”
Ejdemyr’s kick was set up by a long, lead pass to Justin Davis on the left side. The Lobo and an Aggie defender had a footrace to the ball with Davis having an angle on the ball.
The two players tangled up and went down. UC Davis was whistled for a foul inside the box, placing Ejdemyr in front of a penaly kick. He pounded the ball high past McCowan’s left side and deep into the upper corner.
The high shot to McCowan’s left side was not the Aggie goalie’s favorite Lobo shot on the night. He got burned earlier on a similar angle by UNM’s Stephen Brown. Brown’s shot tied the game 1-all at the 56:39 mark in the second half.
“I found myself winning the ball in the attacking half and when that happens we want to attack as fast as possible,” said Brown. “I got the ball back from Mike Green and I took the shot.
“The goalie came to the near post like he should and you are taught to hit the back post. I hit it well and it felt good.”
Looked good, too. The ball screamed past McCowan, rattled high in the cords, and Brown raced down the field celebrating the shot and the outcome.
It was a huge shot. You don’t come from behind and win until you get the tie. “Going into the half down, we told ourselves we aren’t going to lose this game,” said Brown. “We played as a team and we won it.”
The “almost” factor of soccer was with the Lobos early in Friday’s game. The Lobos almost scored three goals in the first ten minutes. The Lobos almost blew UC Davis off the field early.
But the Lobo rocket shots at the goal hit crossbars, narrowly missed, or were cleared by a UC Davis defender inches before crossing the line. As much as UNM threatened early, Aggie McCowan never had to make a save. Lobo Justin Fite had a single save for the Lobos.
Then UC Davis produced a single scoring moment. They outfought the Lobo defense over a ball and got a corner kick from the Southwest corner of the UNM Soccer Complex.
“The kick off Julian Godinez’s foot floated high and dropped in front of the Lobo net and onto the well-angled head of Paul Marcoux. He directed the ball into Lobo net. UC Davis, outplayed most of the first half, had the 1-0 lead and carried it into halftime.
The Lobos dominated the first half, but it wasn’t reflected that much in the stats. UNM had five shots on goal to three for the California visitors. Both teams got off a single corner kick. UC Davis converted a goal off their corner.
“It was just keep doing what we’re doing,” said Ejdemyr. “We know we are really good. If we start panicking, that’s when it gets bad. Just stay composed and patient.”
Kind of like Ejdemyr on a penalty kick.
The win rolled UNM’s record up to 3-2-0. UC Davis drops to 2-4-0. The Lobos ended the game with 13 shots and six shots-on-goal. The Aggies had nine shots and three shots-on-goal. UNM ended with eight corner kicks and UC Davis fired in three. The Aggies had 14 fouls to six for UNM.
“If we go down a goal, we know we are good enough to come back,” said Ejdemyr. “The game is 90 minutes.”
The Lobos match Sunday with Gonzaga will be preceded by an 11 a.m. match between UC Davis and Binghamton. Gonzaga had to go into overtime Friday to edge Binghamton 2-1. Gonzaga got a regulation goal from Ben Funkhouser at the 2:20 mark of the first period before Binghamton tied it 1-all at the 65:12 mark of the second period. Gonzaga’s Nick Love got the unassisted goal in OT to end the game.