Oregon State Knocked Out by Washington in First Round of NCAA Tournament
For the second year in a row Oregon State Men's Soccer has been knocked out in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Last year it was a 1-0 shut out by Gardner-Webb, this year it was a 3-2 overtime loss against Washington. The Huskies will move on to face Southern Methodist on Sunday. The Beavers will be at home.
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Oregon State Men's Soccer: Beavers Take Down Washington 2-1
Fran Cortijo gave the Beavers the lead 3 minutes and 54 seconds into the game. Farnos passed him the ball from just outside the ball, and the Washington defense was too slow to react, allowing Cortijo to fire a rocket into the Husky goal.
Washington's offense put together a few dangerous attacks trying to tie the game, with a shot from Connor Lofy in the sixth minute and a free kick from Alex Hall in the twelfth minute both forcing saves from John Nicholson.
Washington's offense kept the pressure on for much of the first half, and almost tied things up around the 30 minute mark. Iker Carbonell-Garcia made a diving block to thwart the first shot, and the second went wide despite catching OSU goalkeeper John Nicholson out of position. A lucky break for the Beavers.
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Washington kept the pressure on until the half ended. While the Beavers entered the break with a 1-0 lead, Washington dramatically outshot Oregon State during the first half, forcing six saves from John Nicholson. Unless something changed in the second, it felt like only a matter of time before Washington evened the game.
Washington finally found their goal in the 57th minute. A corner kick from Zach Ramsey found Harrison Bertos right in front of the goal, and Bertos's header was unbeatable, tying the game 1-1. Oregon State was still struggling to generate any offense, and the game felt like the Huskies to lose at this point.
Oregon State did a better job of matching Washington's time of possession in the second half, but struggled to get any shots off while the Huskies kept peppering the Beaver goal. As the half wound down, Fernando Hernandez and Tim Hoffman managed to get some spark back into the Beaver offense, each firing a shot, but neither could land a goal.
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In the 77th minute Oregon State got another offensive series going, and Arnau Farnos got a beautiful shot off. It missed it's mark, but on review Washington was called for a hand ball, giving Farnos a penalty kick right in front of the goal. You can't give that kind of opportunity to Arnau Farnos, who buried the ball in the net to put the Beavers back up 2-1.
Washington had plenty of time to tie things up. As the game entered its final 10 minutes the Huskies got a lot of chances, with a pair of corner kicks setting up some great scoring chances. Nicholson made a diving save to block the first shot he faced, but the second got past him, letting Washington tie the game 2-2 in the 85th minute. While both sides got a few chances, neither could get another goal on the board, and the game went to extra time.
Oregon State got a beautiful pair of chances in overtime. The first when Tim Hoffman sliced through the Washington defense, passing the ball to Nico Nee in front of the goal, but Nee's shot went high. The second came on an Fran Cortijo penalty kick, which also went just high. Washington posed some danger toward the end of the period, but couldn't get a goal before the first overtime expired.
Washington finally found their mark in the fourth minute of the second overtime period. Richie Aman just charged toward the Oregon State goal at a odd angle, taking a tricky shot that John Nicholson couldn't save. Washington took the win, 3-2 after
Several Beavers looked great in the loss, which is hollow comfort but should still be lauded. After struggling in the regular season finale against San Diego, John Nicholson put up a heroic effort against the Huskies. He finished the night with 9 saves on 12 shots faced, a career high. Tim Hoffman gave the offense a spark they really needed, putting together some amazing attacks despite never landing a goal.
Some big names will be gone from the Beavers next season, including Arnau Farnos most likely. Players like Tim Hoffman and Sava Catlett give the Beavers a great young core to build around, but they will have to build as they look ahead to the first season of new Pac-12 competition next year.
Having grown up in Pocatello, home of the Idaho State Bengals, John Severs is a lifelong fan of small schools that don't always deliver a lot of wins. Prior to writing for On SI, John covered the Beavers for SB Nation's Oregon State blog Building the Dam, with a focus on baseball and women's basketball. When he's not watching college sports he spends most of his time reading, playing video games and annoying cats.