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Slippery Rock, Pa. - Down 1-0 at halftime, the Millersville men's soccer team stormed into the second half and came back to defeat Slippery Rock 2-1 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday afternoon.

The Marauders (13-5-2) were unable to muster much offense in the first half but wasted little time scoring once the second half began. Austin Hoke and Clark Habecker each scored a goal within the first eight minutes of the second period and swung the momentum--and the game--in the Marauders' favor. The victory vaults the Black and Gold into the NCAA Atlantic Regional Championship game for the second time in the past three years.

Slippery Rock (13-4-3) had multiple opportunites to score in the second half, but a Millersville defense that refused to quit did not allow the Rock to score at all in the final frame. The Rock scored their only goal of the game on a 25-yard shot by Brandon Chiu that was aided by the wind. Marauder keeper Brad Benzing barely made an attempt for the shot as it appeared to be going over the crossbar, but at the last second dipped into the net, giving the home team a 1-0 lead at the 23:54 mark.

The first half ended with the Marauders down a goal but with an 8-6 edge in shots.

"We knew we didn't do a lot of things right in the first half," commented head men's soccer coach Steve Widdowson. "At halftime, we just emphasized correcting our mistakes and taking advantage of the opportunities that we create."

Widdowson and the Marauders had become awfully familiar with The Rock, facing their PSAC foes three times in the span of just over three weeks. The Rock won the first match and advanced on penalty kicks in the second meeting. Widdowson was not going to allow his team to go down a third time without making some adjustments.

Millersville created a plethora of chances once the second period started thanks to a new-look offensive group. Freshman Christopher Davidson joined Andrew Dukes and Jeramey Robbins up top to put more pressure on the Rock defense. The strategy would prove to be genius as Millersville surged into the second half.

With the wind at their back, the Marauders forced two early corners and five shots in the first eight minutes. Widdowson and the men's soccer team clearly wanted to play up-tempo to try and negate The Rock's strong defensive unit.

Slippery Rock's back line was able to clear a Ryan Rohrer corner kick out of the box at the 48:53 mark. The clear was batted down by the wind, though, and fell to the feet of Hoke who was playing right outside back. The junior defender sent a high cross into the box that floated dangerously towards the goal. Rock keeper Joe Agerskow went up to make the save, but the ball slipped through his gloves and into the back of the net, tying the game at one goal apiece early in the second period.

Moments later it was Rohrer again who was creating scoring opportunites for the visiting team, but this time his shot was saved by Agerskow. After neither team gained possession, Rohrer found Habecker in the middle of the field from about 30-yards out. After hearing some encouragment from his teammates, Habecker fired a shot on goal. His mark was true as the ball was blistered into the lower left 90, and in the span of three minutes the Marauders went from a 1-0 deficit to a 2-1 lead with 38 minutes remaining in regulation.

"I received the ball and looked up and Slippery Rock's defense was playing off of me," commented Habecker. "I heard Colby Zeger yell 'hit it' so I decided to take the shot. I was able to put a lot of speed on the ball, it worked out and I helped our team take the lead."

As any postseason soccer game goes, the match was far from over.

Both teams created scoring opportunites as the game continued, and Slippery Rock increased the pressure with its backs against the wall.

In the 84th minute, a Rock attacker chased down a cross and kicked the ball at the goal with Benzing charging. The ball went over Benzing and was then headed right toward the goal for what was going to be a sure game-tying goal. However, out of nowhere, Millersville defender Anthony Fratini chased down the shot and cleared the ball to the side just before it crossed the goal line. Fratini's save in the 84th minute was his third defensive save from the goal line on the day.

The Rock fired three shots and forced three corners in the final minutes, but Benzing and the defensive unit thwarted each attempt to preserve the 2-1 victory.

Millersville held a 17-14 edge in shots and 11-5 advantage in shots on goal. Davidson led the Marauders with three shots and Benzing made one save in the game.

"It is always challenging to play a team three times in such a short period," added Widdowson. "We fought hard the entire game, and I beleive this is a well-deserved victory for our team."

Widdowson knows all about winning in the NCAA Tournament. The Marauders' skipper is now 5-2-2 all-time in NCAA postseason play and has guided the Marauders to the NCAA Atlantic Regional Championship game three times in the past six years.

The Marauders travel to either Mercyhurst or Notre Dame (Ohio) next weekend in the NCAA Atlantic Regional Championship game. The Lakers and the Falcons square off tomorrow in South Euclid, Ohio. Game information will be provided at the beginning of next week.