Last Second Kick Unable to Go Through as Wilkes Men's Soccer Ties with Arcadia on Senior Day 

EDWARDSVILLE – Zachary Dudak (Stroudsburg, PA/Stroudsburg) took a last second shot in front of the net that was ultimately saved, resulting in Wilkes University men's soccer team ending their regular season in a tie with Arcadia University in Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom (MAC Freedom) action on Saturday afternoon at Bruggeworth Field on Senior Day.

Wilkes would go to 7-9-2 on the season, ending their MAC Freedom run with a 4-3-1 record. Arcadia would finish their season at 8-5-6 and 2-3-3 in conference action. 

The first half saw a defensive hold by both teams, as only two shots were taken by Wilkes and Arcadia. The game would stay with no score going into the second half. 

Both offenses began to start to put their gas on the pedal, as Arcadia would take nine shots in the second half, while Wilkes would follow behind with six. The Knights would strike first, as Ethan Torpey would kick the ball to the right side of the net to give Arcadia a 1-0 lead in the 52nd minute of the game. Wilkes would try to break through with Matthew Horwedel (Delanson, NY/Schalmont Senior) and Daniel Becker (Cherry Hill, NJ/Camden Catholic) taking shots that would either be saved by Michael Paznokas or go out of bounds. 

Dudak would make the game tied at 1-1 in the 79th minute as he took a Chris Bird (Toms River, NJ/Toms River North) pass near the goal and kicked it straight into the net, keeping Wilkes in the game and getting them on the board. 

Arcadia had a chance to break the tie, as a foul near the goal line would result in the penalty kick by Steven Warren, who attempted to retake the lead for the Knights. The penalty kick would hit the top crossbar and miss, keeping the Colonels in the game.  

Wilkes had a corner opportunity as the clock kept ticking down near the end of the game. Horwedel took the kick quickly, and with seconds running down, Budak took his shot right in front of the goal again. This time, the kick did not have the speed to cross the line quickly and was saved as time expired, resulting in the tie for the Colonels and Knights. 

Budak ended the game with a goal, as Bird had the lone assist on the day. Nick Kinzler (Jackson, NJ/Jackson Memorial) finished the game with three saves on the day. 

Before the game, Wilkes recognized Horwedel, Kinzler, Owen Breisch (Fleetwood, PA/Fleetwood Area), Cameron Fiester (Muncy Valley, PA/Sullivan County), and Vincent Ippolito (Park Ridge, NJ/Park Ridge) as they honored their seniors on Senior Day. 

Wilkes will go on the road Tuesday as they will compete in the MAC Freedom Play-In Game against FDU-Florham.