The Dayton Flyers won their fifth straight match Wednesday night, this time up-ending crosstown rival Wright State 1-0 on a Sunday Isename goal just seconds before the end of the first sudden death overtime. Dayton, who started the season 0-3-1, improves to 5-3-1 while the Raiders fall to 4-6-1.

In a match that showcased a pair of incredibly even sides, things actually played out just like the scoreboard indicated after 90 minutes of action — a virtual stalemate. And it wasn’t until Isename’s cleanup of a ball in the mixer that proved be the difference in the game, to the pleasure of most of the 1,131 fans at Baujan Field.

The first half started off like any crosstown rivalry. Both teams went hard to loose balls and tried to make the most of their chances in the offensive third of the field, but the defenses turned out to be more than the offenses could handle, turning the game into a grinding war of attrition to see which side would commit the first mistake — a mistake that would probably decide the game. That came in overtime, but for the first 45 minutes, not much of anything was solved.

The best strategy for Dayton and Wright State turned out to be free kicks. Both sides tried desparately to win balls in the midfield, and with the defenses playing equally well, sending long balls in the box with the hope of finding a friendly head or foot ended up being the best opportunities to score — especially on dead ball situations where set pieces were implemented. A few loose balls in the box gave both teams a chance to sneak in a garbage goal, but it never happened and the half ended with little fanfare.

The second half started out much like the first, but WSU slowly took control between the 60th and 75th minutes by winning a handful of headers that resulted in some quality possession. That meant the Flyers had to remain especially sharp in the back, and other than a dangerous ball that crossed just in front of Flyer GK Jason Kurdziel and went untouched by a Raider attacker, Dayton withstood each challenge well.

Dayton turned things around near the end of regulation and had a couple chances of their own to put the game away, but Wright State was there as well to get a foot on the ball or deflect a Flyer shot. As the first 90 minutes ended, it was still anyone’s game and the first major mistake would ultimately end up costing one team a victory.

The first overtime was mostly in favor of Dayton, and several good chances forced the Raider defense to make more defensive stops. The Flyers also retook the loose ball advantage and were physical enough to earn some takeaways on effective shoulder charges that the referee wisely swallowed his whistle on. Things looked like a second overtime was in the cards, but one last counterattack by the Flyers proved to be the difference maker. With a long ball in the box, several players tried to poke it in, but it was Sunday Isename who finished it off and earned UD the hard-fought victory with just nine seconds remaining in the first overtime.

Fans who loved defense got a kick out of Wednesday’s match and Dayton had a solid showing in the back line. Junior defender Dan Thomas continues to be a rock in the back and had one of his best games of the season, using his speed, long throw-ins out of the back, and physical tools to bottle things up on the right side. Freshman Dasan Robinson put on an aerial display on several occasions, climbing the ladder for several impressive headers that no one else could go up and get. Win or lose, the Flyers are putting forth a good effort in the hustle department and are doing well enough on defense to give the offense a chance to win the game — as they did on Wednesday. Perhaps it’s confidence fans are seeing, but it appears to be a team who believes they can and will win.

The Flyers earned a mich-needed victory and continue the momentum as they head into the treacherous portion of the Atlantic-10 schedule. Dayton opens A-10 play with consecutive road matches against URI, UMass, GW, and Richmond, all of whom just happen to be the biggest hurdles in earning a seed in the 4-team A-10 postseason tournament. Fans will likely know whether the Flyers will be one of those four when they return. A couple road wins over the top half of the league should go a long way to ensuring Dayton punches its card.