Box Score LANCASTER, Pa. – Seven of the previous nine contests between Franklin & Marshall and Johns Hopkins have gone into overtime. The latest installment on Saturday night at Tylus Field appeared destined for the same until a tally by Jeremy Levine with 12 seconds remaining on the clock handed the No. 6 Diplomats a 2-1 victory over their Centennial Conference (CC) rival.
F&M remained unbeaten with the victory and now sit at 13-0-1, 6-0-0 CC on the year, while the Blue Jays fell to 8-4-2, 2-3-1 CC. The win marks the first at home for the Diplomats over Johns Hopkins since 2007.
In the 22nd minute of the first, F&M found itself in an early 1-0 hole when the Blue Jays' Rob Heuler fired a long shot outside the box from the left side and found the bottom left of the net.
With five minutes remaining in the stanza, Conor Pellas lined up for a free kick on the left side and curled a long ball into the net that Johns Hopkins' goalkeeper Nick Cerrone managed to turn away with a spectacular diving stop to the top-right corner of the goal.
Momentum resided on the Blue Jays side until the 73rd minute in the second half. Ben Draheim sent a header that Chase TenBrook played off his chest at the left of the box, before rocketing a shot into the right of the goal to knot the contest at 1-1.
Extra minutes appeared imminent in the 89th minute before a long throw in from Janse Schermerhorn on the left side led to a scramble in the box. The ball ended up at the foot of Levine, who lofted a shot into the right of the net for the dramatic game winner.
The victory marks the furthest the Diplomats have gone in the season without a loss, topping the 2007 team that started off the year at 13-0.
F&M held the edge on shots at 14-11, including an 8-3 margin in the second half. The Diplomats also led on corners at 6-3. TenBrook led the way in shots at five, followed by two a piece from Devon Malfitano, Sam Lane and Chris Scott.
Trevor Britton (13-0-1) was solid in goal for F&M, stopping four of the five shots he faced. Cerrone (2-2) picked up three saves but was dealt the loss.
The Diplomats remain in the driver's seat of the conference with three games to play and return to action next Saturday to celebrate homecoming against Haverford at 6:00 p.m.
