OMAHA, Neb. – In a grueling 110 minutes of play, the Omaha men's soccer team battled cross-town rival Creighton to a 1-1 tie on Monday night at Morrison Stadium.
The Mavericks are now 2-1-1 on the season while No. 8 Creighton, playing in its home opener, is 1-1-1.
Omaha broke the deadlock in the 13th minute. Fazlo Alihodzic curled a free kick from 25-yards into the near post to put the Mavericks up, 1-0.
Omaha defender Denzel Woods was called for a hard foul in the penalty area in the 17th minute resulting in a penalty kick. Omaha goalkeeper Joseph Ghitis stopped Lucas Stauffer's shot to preserve the lead.
Creighton tied the game early in the second half. Ricardo Perez received a pass from Noah Franke and was able to get around Omaha goalkeeper Joseph Ghitis. Perez tucked a well-placed shot into an empty net.
Neither team was able to mount a clear scoring opportunity in the two overtime periods.
Creighton held a 21-6 advantage in shots including a 6-4 advantage in shots on goal. The Bluejays also led in corner kicks, 12-6.
Mark Moulton had a team-best two shots, one of which was on goal, while Elvir Ibisevic also had two attempts. Fazlo Alihodzic, Lalo Gamboa, Noor Hamadi, Emmanuel Hamzat and Michael Jaime all had one shot attempt.
Ghitis logged all 110 minutes between the posts and picked up five saves.
Omaha will return to action on Friday, Sept. 9 against DePaul. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. at Caniglia Field.
Scoring Summary
Omaha 1 0 0 0 - 1
Creighton 0 1 0 0 - 1
Individual Scoring
Fazlo Alihodzic (Omaha) at 12:38 (unassisted)
Ricardo Perez (Creighton) at 51:27 (Noah Franke)
Goalkeeper Saves
Joseph Ghitis (Omaha) – 5
Alex Kapp (Creighton) - 3
