[AKRON-CREIGHTON]Caleb Porter‘s tenure at Akron is over. The Zips fell to Creighton, 5-4, in a shootout after their NCAATournament quarterfinal ended 1-1.
Akron looked to have the game won when Creighton’s Jose Ribas was whistled for a handball in the box and redcarded 27 seconds into overtime. But Scott Caldwell‘s shot was saved by Bluejays goalkeeper Jeff Gal.
Justseconds after the penalty kick, a corner kick by Aodhan Quinn found Saad Abdul-Salaam, whose header banged off the farpost and out of play.
Akron outshot Creighton, 31-11, during the game and 11-2 in overtime. Gal made four of his eight saves in the second overtime.
The Zips took an early1-0 lead in the 12th minute on a goal by Reinaldo Brenes. They led until the 83rd minute when Andrew Ribeiro slipped theball to German freshman Timo Pitter, who scored from 12 yards out.
In the shootout, Akron’s Wil Trapp wasthe only one of 10 shooters not to score.
Porter, who had announced early in the season that he would become the Portland Timbers head coach in 2013, finished his Akron career with aseven-year record of 123-18-17.
Creighton advances to the quarterfinals for a second straight year and the sixth time in their last 10 trips to the postseason.
Akron 1 Creighton 1. Goals: Brenes (Trapp) 12; Pitter (Andrew Ribeiro) 83
Att.: 2,778.
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This game can be extremely cruel. Akron should have won this game by a score of 4-1 but luck was not on their side. They dominated from beginning to end and played a beautiful brand of soccer. They are the Barcelona of college soccer and really should be the National Champion. However, it was not meant to be as the best team does not always win. Best of luck to Creighton as they continue their quest. They can rest assured that they will not have to play another team that can match the caliber of play they faced from Akron.