The St. Thomas Aquinas College men's soccer team battled to a 2-2 tie in an East Coast Conference battle with the University of the District of Columbia at Spartan Field. The Spartans, ranked #9 in the East Region in this week's National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) poll, drew for the second straight game and now stand at 5-1-2 overall, 2-0-2 in the ECC, with UDC now at 2-6-1, 2-0-1.

A disallowed St. Thomas Aquinas goal in the final minutes of the second overtime put the finishing touch on a well-played contest which saw the visiting Firebirds rally from an early 2-0 deficit to forge the tie.

Playing their first home game in nearly four weeks, the Spartans warmed to their home field early, with Brian Neal converting a beautiful cross from Jack Hanlon at 9:48 and Michael Sulfita finishing off Kenny Caraballo's feed at 11:24 to give the hosts a quick 2-0 advantage.

Each team showed great skill throughout the afternoon, but UDC would score a pivotal goal with just 1:50 to play in the first half when Christian Juarez sent Kevin Claure-Guzman in alone to cut the margin to 2-1 at half.

Benhur Gebretsanie found the mark at 71:05 to tie the score, and each team had chances thereafter that were thwarted by strong defense or outstanding goaltending. The score remained deadlocked through 90 minutes of regulation and the first 10 minutes of overtime, setting the stage for a memorable finish.

With time dwindling in the second OT session, STAC earned a corner kick, playing the ball in quickly and scoring what appeared to be the Golden Goal with 2:04 to play, sending the Spartans into celebration. The officials conferred, however, and determined that a second ball was on the field of play, nullifying the apparent game-winner and the game resumed, concluding with the draw.

The Spartans face another big conference test on Saturday when #7 ranked Mercy College visits for a 2:00 pm start. STAC will then host New Haven on Wednesday, October 5, and Molloy College comes to Spartan Field on Saturday, October 8.