Melakuqi's Late Goal Pulls Men's Soccer To A 3-3 Draw With Davenport

SCORE: Northwood Timberwolves 3, Davenport Panthers 3

RECORDS: Northwood (0-1-1, 0-0-0 G-MAC), Davenport (1-1-1, 0-0-0 GLIAC)

LOCATION: Paradiso Athletic Fields – Tiffin, Ohio

RECAP: The Northwood men's soccer traveled to Tiffin, Ohio, for a neutral site clash with Davenport Thursday (September 12).  Northwood jumped out to an early 2-0 lead before Davenport answered with 3. Northwood's final goal in the 89' brought the back-and-forth game to a 3-3 draw.

GAME HIGHLIGHTS

• Northwood found an opportunity early when Josh Rowland found a seam in the middle before finding Nathan Casal for the score from the right side, 1-0 NU.
• A free kick in the 28' from Chris Escalante led to a Panther penalty in the box, allowing Northwood to go up 2-0. Adrian Lekocaj would cash in the penalty kick to the lower left corner, stretching NU's lead.
• Going into the half, Davenport had the edge in shots 9-3 and corner opportunities but found themselves down 2-0 in the score column.
• In the 66', a second yellow to Lathan Baker gave Davenport a free kick from just outside the box. The Panthers then cut the lead to 2-1 with a score around the line.
• Less than three minutes of game time later, the Panthers would tie it at 2-2 with a drive to the right side past NU's goalkeeper.
• Davenport continued to storm back in the second half, capitalizing on the man advantage in the 86'. A cross in from the right side put DU up 3-2.
• Northwood answered right back in the 89'. Gjon Melakuqi took a free kick outside the box and curved it into the upper right corner past a diving goalkeeper, 3-3.
• Over the final minutes, the score remained 3-3 as the contest fell to a draw.

GAME STATS

• Shots: Northwood 11 (7), Davenport 21 (11)
• Saves: Northwood 6 (4 - Nick Borkowski, 2- Henri Grunewald), Davenport 4 (Beau Hudd)
• Corners: Northwood 1, Davenport 2

UP NEXT

• Men's soccer stays in Tiffin, Ohio, for a Saturday tilt with Saginaw Valley St. (September 14) beginning at 2:30 p.m.