Overtime Goal Lifts No. 2 Wake Forest to ACC Semifinal Win

Wednesday, November 9

Winston-Salem, NC

7:00 PM

University of Louisville

12-5-2, 5-2-1ACC

Wake Forest (Semifinals)

14-2-3, 5-1-2ACC

OT 2

Louisville

Wake Forest

Overtime Goal Lifts No. 2 Wake Forest to ACC Semifinal Win

November 09, 2016 | Men's Soccer

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

Kubel scores game-tying goal in 90th minute before Demon Deacons answer with game-winner 89 seconds into overtime

By: Garett Wall

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - After junior defender Tim Kubel scored the game-tying goal in the 90th minute to force overtime for the No. 9 Louisville men's soccer team in Wednesday night's ACC Championship semifinal match, Ema Twumasi answered with the game-winning tally just 89 seconds into extra time to lift No. 2 Wake Forest to a 2-1 triumph at Spry Stadium.

Moments after the Cardinals (12-5-2) had extended the match with Kubel's dramatic shot, the host Demon Deacons (14-2-3) secured the golden goal when Twumasi found space on a breakaway in the center of the field and scored inside the right post at the 91:29 mark in the match. The goal was the fourth of the season for Twumasi, while Jon Bakero was credited with the assist for second seeded Wake Forest, which will face No. 4 seed and third-ranked Clemson in Sunday's ACC final in Charleston, S.C.

Louisville found itself on the brink of elimination in regulation time before Kubel delivered his third goal of the season scoring inside the far left post at the 89:10 mark in the match to even the score at 1-1. The goal, Kubel's third in the last four matches and the 15th of his collegiate career, highlighted a strong performance for the Cardinals, who finished with an 11-5 advantage in shots and a 5-2 edge in shots on-goal in the match.

"I was really proud of the effort tonight. Defensively, I thought we were very disruptive for big portions of the game," said Louisville head coach Ken Lolla. "During two moments, we could have performed better, but aside from that, I thought we were very good on the night and dominated stretches of the game."

The five shots were the fewest this season for Wake Forest, who were outshot overall for just the fourth time in 19 matches in 2016. However, the Demon Deacons did convert on two of those five chances, including scoring the first goal of the night in the 29th minute when Hayden Partain connected for his third goal of the season less than two minutes after entering the match off the Wake Forest bench. After creating space on the right side, Partain scored inside the left post for the 1-0 edge.

The margin remained the same until Kubel's goal more than 60 minutes later pulled the Cardinals even. With the loss, Louisville dropped to 5-5-0 this season against nationally ranked foes.

Up next, the Cardinals will await their NCAA Championship assignment as the field of 48 teams will be unveiled on Monday at 1 p.m., ET on NCAA.com. First round action in the single elimination event is set for Thursday, Nov. 17, while the top 16 seeds will receive first round byes before hosting second round matches on Sunday, Nov. 20.

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