ODU Men's Soccer Team Rallies from 2-0 Deficit but Forced to Settle for 2-2 Tie With George Washington

NORFOLK, Va. – It wasn't quite the start to his 27^th and final season as Old Dominion's men's soccer coach that Alan Dawson had hoped for, but his optimism about the last squad he will coach hasn't dimmed a bit.
 
After ODU gave up two cheap goals in the first half, the Monarchs were dominant in the second half. They scored twice and nearly connected on several other shots before settling for a 2-2 tie with George Washington.
 
ODU's home opener was witnessed by a vocal crowd of 454 at the ODU Soccer Complex.
 
Dawson, who announced last week he is retiring after this season, said during the preseason that he had high hopes for this team despite being picked to finish ninth in the Sun Belt Conference.
 
"I'm still just as optimistic," he said. "We've got a little bit of depth, but we've got to stay healthy.
 
"We've just got to learn and grow and get better. But I like this team."
 
ODU appeared to take a 1-0 lead on a goal by Pierce Gallaway, but it was disallowed by game officials. Dawson said he thinks the goal should have been allowed.


 
George Washington, meanwhile, took a 1-0 lead on a goal by Ben Hissrich at 35:52 of the first half. Then came a goal that could have broken ODU's back, when William Turner headed in goal six seconds before halftime.
 
"The second goal was a disgrace," Dawson said. "You're running the clock down to halftime and made a rookie mistake.
 
"I thought we were dominant in the first half. But we were down 2-0."
 
ODU, which outshot GW, 16-8, was totally dominant in a second half, in which most play was on the Revolutionaries side of the field.
 
Karan Mandair, a junior midfielder from Hastings, New Zealand, scored less than four minutes into the second half on a penalty kick, which he sliced to the left side of the net past goalie Tom Macauley.
 
Forward Michael Eberle, a sophomore from Dumfries, Virginia, made it 2-2 at 68:22 when he headed in a near-perfect pass from Nathan Lam, a graduate transfer from VMI who is from Midlothian, Virginia.
 
Valdimar Daoi Saevarsson, a freshman from Reykjavik, Iceland was among several Monarchs who took shots that went just wide of the net in the final minutes.

Key White, a graduate transfer from North Carolina who played at Norfolk's Maury High, put pressure much of the night on George Washington with his speed – he was the fastest player on the pitch.
 
But ODU could not just punch the third goal into the net.
 
"We responded well," Dawson said of the second half. "We knocked on the door. I thought we had a third goal in us, and we couldn't find it.
 
"You come away with a tie. You don't lose a game, but you feel like you should have won the game. It was a tough night in that way."
 
ODU begins a five-game road trip at UMBC Monday night. The Monarchs next play at home on Tuesday, Sept. 19, against VCU in the first of four consecutive home games.
 
UMBC was 8-2 at home last season and was picked to finish third in the America East Conference.
 
 "UMBC will be a lot more of a challenge for us," Dawson said. "We've got to play better than we did tonight."


 ODU defender Nick Osygus on the move.