Despite playing a man down for 79 minutes against Lehigh on Sunday afternoon at Reeves Field, the American University women's soccer team came away with a 1-1 double overtime draw.

Kendra Jones gave American (5-10-3, 1-2-3 Patriot League) a 1-0 lead in the 21st minute when Gabrielle Barbato played a perfect long-ball down the left side of the field. Jones was streaking down the sideline, as she gathered the pass, cut to the inside, and slid a perfectly-placed low shot inside the far post for her third goal of the season. For Barbato, the helper was the first of the season and second of her career.

With the Eagles on the attack throughout a majority of the opening few minutes, the scope of the match shifted dramatically when AU senior defender and last year's Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year Friederike Engel received a red card at the 30-minute mark of the first half. The Eagles were then forced to play a man down for the rest of the match.

But American held tough through the remainder of the first half and into the start of the second stanza, led by the defensive efforts of midfielder Michelle Montilio, who slid back to fill Engel's spot on the defensive line.

Still facing a 1-0 deficit, Lehigh (8-3-4, 3-1-2 PL) created an offensive opportunity in the 71st minute when the Mountain Hawks drew a penalty kick. Liz Carlos stepped to the line and fired a high shot past AU goalkeeper Lindsey Farthing to knot the score at one.

Neither team generated many legitimate scoring chances through the remainder of regulation, sending the match to overtime.

$website.include("/video/Womens_Soccer/2010-11/Postgame_Highlights/20101024_WSOC_Lafayette_Lehigh_Highlights.flv")

In the first 10-minute extra session, the Eagles had their best game-winning opportunity when Brooke Sheppard fed a pass to a driving Jones, who flicked her close-range shot just wide left of the goal. Jones got off another shot less than two minutes later, which also sailed wide.

The match headed to a second overtime period where American, still playing a man down, continued to push ahead and attempt to generate offensive opportunities. The final chance was on a shot by Katarina Kingston from about 30 yards out, which went high, and moments later, the match ended in a 1-1 draw.

Farthing recorded five saves in goal for AU, allowing the lone score on the penalty kick and making a potential game-saving stop in the 79th minute on a Lehigh odd-man rush opportunity.

"I couldn't be more happy with my team," remarked Head Coach Dave Bucciero during his live postmatch interview on Eagles Vision TV. "I thought we played well, and even being down a player, we moved the ball pretty well and created chances. I usually find one or two things that we discuss in terms of things we can do better. I couldn't find one today. They played with unbelievable guts and effort, and gave it everything they had. I don't know if we could have played much better."

For the Mountain Hawks, the tie was just the result they needed to clinch a berth into the four-team Patriot League Tournament. On the flip side, the draw, coupled with the other Patriot League results on Sunday, eliminated American from postseason contention.

Prior to the match, American's three senior student-athletes – Engel, Farthing and Sheppard – were honored in a "Senior Day" ceremony. The trio has played key roles in American 12-6-9 Patriot League record over the four seasons, which included two Patriot League Tournament berths and an appearance in last year's PL Championship Game.

"They have made an unbelievable impact and we will benefit from their leadership in the future because of the way they've led as captains," added Bucciero about the senior class. "They are unbelievable role models in how they approach practice and how they approach games. They have motivated the team and they have motivated the coaching staff…they are the number one reason why we were able to turn our season around [to go 5-2-3 after a 0-8 start]."

Additionally, for Sheppard, today's match marked her 77th career appearance, which ties her for the most games in program history. Erin Koch (2006-09), Kelly McLaughlin (2006-09) and Eleni Vagelatos (1995-98) also registered 77 career games.

Sheppard will have an opportunity to break the career appearances record when American travels to Navy on Friday, October 29 for the regular season finale. Match time from Annapolis, Md., is set for 7 p.m.