The Duquesne Dukes scored in the first six minutes of the match, but the Flyers found the equalizer in the second half to salvage a 1-1 2OT draw on Saturday night at Baujan Field. A rowdy crowd of 831 fans enjoyed Senior Night festivities before the match and unusually mild temperatures thereafter for an almost perfect late October evening of soccer. The Flyers are now 6-8-3 (2-3-2), while the Dukes leave town at 8-3-5 (3-1-3).

The Flyers started the match without the services of All-A10 defender Lalas Abubakar — suspended for one game after accumulating a pair of yellow cards in last week’s victory over Rhode Island. Whether his absence contributed to UD’s slow start is debatable, but the Dukes wasted no time capitalizing on their early chances.

Duquesne earned a corner kick in the 6th minute and served a ball from the right flag to the middle of the six-yard box. The Dukes one-timed it to the back post to put themselves up 1-0 on the road.

The remaining 40 minutes of the half were highly competitive. While the soccer was hit-or-miss at times, the two teams were evenly matched in most areas of the field. The run of play switched back and forth as both teams tried to probe the opposing defense for gaps and other weak areas for possible exploitation. The quality chances however were few and far between. Team defense was very good and through-balls to unmarked attacking players were not much of a factor.

Dayton’s two best chances came on redirects inside the Duquesne goal box, but both chances missed just inches beyond the far post to keep the score 1-0. The Dukes countered with transition soccer and tried using speed and quickness to catch the Flyers napping in the defensive half of the field. While Duquesne linked up well in the midfield at times, their offense bogged down in the last 25 yards — due in large part to Dayton’s compact marking and positioning.

Flyer goalkeeper Federico Barrios made one important save on a dive that pushed the shot far post and out of danger, but aside from that wasn’t especially busy in the first half.

Halftime stats reflected the even run of play with shots 8-5 in Dayton’s favor while Duquesne won the battle of corner kicks 3-2.

The second half was once again entertaining — if for no other reason the teams remained so evenly matched. The Dukes sported a much better overall record and were flirting with 2nd place in the A10 standings, but the Flyers proved their equal — or better — in the last 45 minutes of regulation. Searching for the equalizer, it took a bit of patience and persistence but the Flyers finally tied the match at 1-1 in the 78th minute on a set piece from the right side. Rok Taneski played a ball into the mixer that Kennedy Nwabia one-timed to the back of the net.

Over the final 12 minutes of regulation, the Flyers pushed hard for the game-winner. The energized fans got behind the home team and the enthusiasm helped raise the level of play. Dayton was close on a number of occasions, including a terrific low cross that carried beyond the far post just feet beyond the goal line. Unfortunately no one was home to knock it in, but UD created a few more opportunities thinking they could end the match and avoid extra time altogether.

It didn’t happen however, despite UD outshooting Duquesne 8-4 in the second frame. The teams played a pair of 10-minute overtimes that were as hotly-contested as the first 90 minutes. UD out-shot Duquesne 4-2 in extra time but couldn’t manufacture a game-winner.

Overall, the Flyers out-shot Duquesne 20-11 but just 7-4 in shots on goal. It was a defensive wrestling match for the much of the night — despite the intriguing countering opportunities each offense had at their disposal. Based on their respective records, the Dukes should have been more polished, but that wasn’t the case and Dayton never looked overwhelmed. In fact, the Flyers looked like the better team despite competing short-handed.

It was very winnable match for the Flyers, the kind of match they hated to squander at home as they try to sneak into the A10 postseason tournament. Every match has been a struggle to finish teams off however and this one was no exception. And it means the remaining match is that much more important if they want to extend their season.

UD finishes up the A10 season next Saturday at VCU.