With the score knotted at one and just 15 minutes to play in regulation, freshman Christian Lawal was dragged down in the Wildcats’ box, and junior starting forward Jonny Forrest stepped up to take a crucial penalty kick.
Forrest, back from an injury that kept him sidelined for most of the season, blasted a shot toward the bottom right corner of the net. A diving Davidson keeper would keep the ball out and ultimately end the Colonials’ season.
Following a scoreless 20-minute overtime, the match ended in a 1-1 tie, leaving GW with just eight conference points and without a spot in the Atlantic 10 tournament.
“We had some great momentum going into [the penalty]. And it knocks you back a bit, but we found the rhythm again. We responded even after missing it,” head coach Craig Jones said. “At the end, we had some chances where I don’t know how the ball didn’t go in, and that’s just been the story of the last four games we played.”
The Colonials struck early in the first half with sophomore Tobi Adewole scoring the team’s only goal of the game in the 12th minute.
Despite GW creating chances and controlling play, the Wildcats were finally able to break through early in the second half. Davidson ripped a free kick from the top of the box past goalkeeper Jean-Pierre van der Merwe in the 61st minute to even the score.
A cross off the foot of freshmen Oliver Curry that bounced around the box with no luck in the waning minutes of overtime would be the best of many chances the Colonials were able to create in the extra frames.
GW would outshoot Davidson 20-17 on the game and outnumber the Wildcats in corners 8-6, and van der Merwe would finish with a total of four saves, but neither team would come out on top.
“I was very proud of the performance. That’s a good team we played, and with the chances we had I thought we deserved to maybe win,” Jones said. “We hung in there, we didn’t lose it… I just thought it was a good group performance.”
Sunday was also Senior Day, with the Colonials honoring five departing team members. Goalkeepers van der Merwe and Luke Farrell, midfielder Farhan Khan, and defender co-captains Andri Alexandersson and Matthew Scott will all be graduating in the offseason.
“The five guys we have have been great… they led as you want your seniors to lead, and that’s all you can ask of these guys, and I think they leave the program in a better place than when they first came in,” Jones said.
Alexandersson led the team with six shots and two shots on goal Sunday, and, despite missing the postseason, reflected on the positives following his final match as a Colonial.
“My career here at GW has been awesome. It’s been so enjoyable meeting all these guys. I made some life-long friends, and I will leave a very happy man,” Alexandersson said. “Everyone is a huge part of the team, especially the seniors with all of their experience, but I know there are going to be players who can step up and fill our shoes.”
The Colonials end the season with a 6-9-2 overall record and finish 2-4-2 in A-10 play, missing the playoffs for the third consecutive year.
“We’re obviously disappointed,” Jones said. “We would have liked to have gotten into the A-10 [Tournament]… and we fell just short of that, but overall we had some good wins and beat a ranked team, which we hadn’t done for a long time, so I think there are a lot more positives than negatives to take away.”
