ST. LOUIS – Saint Louis freshman Jack DiMaria scored the 86th minute equalizer, then the golden goal in double overtime to vault the Billikens to a thrilling 2-1 victory over Kentucky Thursday in the first round of the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship at Hermann Stadium.
The Billikens (11-2-7), who extended their unbeaten streak to 11, advance to the second round to face No. 6 overall seed Indiana Sunday in Bloomington, Ind. Game time is 11 a.m. (CT).
The goals for DiMaria were the first of his career. With the Bills trailing 1-0 late, he sent a long shot in at the 85:56 mark that the Kentucky keeper couldn't corral to make it 1-1 SLU.
Neither team scored in the first 10-minute overtime session. DiMaria ended it nearly four minutes into the second OT. Carlos Leatherman did much of the work on the right flank. He sent a ball across the face and DiMaria was there to tap it in and send the crowd of 1,000+ at Hermann Stadium into a frenzy.
The Billikens played from behind as Kentucky scored early in the match. Agustin Lopes scored from distance in the fifth minute to put the Wildcats ahead.
A Kentucky player was issued a red card in the 83rd minute, forcing the Wildcats to play a man down for the rest of regulation and the overtime periods.
Sunday's game against Indiana is a rematch from a SLU/IU game at Indiana earlier this year. The Hoosiers prevailed 1-0 in Bloomington on Sept. 3.