BOYDS, Md. – Senior Mustapha Sowe netted two quick goals in the second half to help the American University men's soccer team defeat UMBC in a thrilling 4-3 game that came down to the final seconds of the game as the Eagles made it two wins in a row on Tuesday night.
 
QUICK NOTABLES

• American struck first with just 30 seconds left in the first half, a goal from senior Nicholas Shirley set up by a free kick from junior Taku Takahashi.
• UMBC responded with just four seconds left in the half to level the score.
• Sowe scored two goals in two minutes to help AU jump out to a two-goal lead early in the second half.
• Just two minutes later, graduate student Ethan Boyle netted a penalty kick to make the lead three for AU.
• UMBC answered with two goals to make it 4-3, and even had a chance in the closing seconds to level the score again.

 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• UMBC opened up the first half on the offensive, testing junior goalkeeper Matthew Tibbetts several times early.
• American had a promising chance midway through the first half as Sowe had a one-on-one with UMBC's goalkeeper in the 35th minute, saved by the Retrievers.
• American struck first with just 30 seconds left in the half as Takahashi served Shirley with a perfect free kick that Shirley converted with a header to give the Eagles a 1-0 lead.
• UMBC answered immediately with a goal with just four seconds remaining in the first half in a chaotic sequence to end the opening frame.
• The end to the first half was an indicator of things to come, as AU scored three quick goals in the second half to get to a 4-1 lead.
• After having several chances in the first half, Sowe broke away for his first goal of the season in the 56th minute thanks to assists from juniors Troy Elgersma and Jonah Fogel.
• Sowe broke away again just a minute later for yet another goal, this time after a deep ball from senior Leo Palomo.
• Two minutes later, it was American again as Boyle netted his first goal of the season on a penalty kick to make the Eagles' lead three.
• UMBC put the pressure on to try and get back into the game, as the Retrievers cut the deficit to two goals in the 76th minute.
• After a flurry of chances, the Retrievers made the difference just one in the 87th minute.
• UMBC had a dangerous chance in the closing seconds of the game as a header from a perfect cross floated over the crossbar as time expired, giving American its second win of the season.

 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• UMBC's aggressive play yielded chances aplenty, as the Retrievers outshot American 23-13 for the game.
• UMBC had 11 corner kick opportunities to just two from American.
• Tibbetts, the two-time reigning Patriot League Men's Soccer Goalkeeper of the Week, made six saves for AU on the night.
• In a physical game, each team committed 16 fouls.

 
UP NEXT

• The Eagles will make the long trip to Hamilton, N.Y., for a 4:00 p.m. matchup with Colgate on Saturday, September 21.

 
FOLLOW US

• For the latest on American University Men's Soccer, stay tuned to AUEagles.com and follow the team on X (formerly Twitter) (@AU_MSoccer), and Instagram (@au.msoccer).