ANGOLA, Ind. – The Trine University men's soccer team was upset at home by the sixth-seeded The University of Olivet Comets on Wednesday evening at the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) Tournament Semifinals. The Thunder entered play as the number two seed in the event, but came up short by a score of 3-2 after two overtime periods to their opponents.

The match was a battle between the two program leaders as Trine senior forward Tyler Murphy, a First Team All-MIAA recipient, and Djimo Kouyate, Olivet's Second Team All-MIAA member scored all five of the goals.

The Thunder were on the offensive early and often in the match with freshman forward Evan Komrska getting his first start and missing the mark on his first two shots of the night. Senior midfielder Joey Donovan also had a shot blocked early on along with an attempt by Murphy that missed the mark.

The first shot for the Comets would come in the 20th minute, and despite a large shot differential, Olivet would claim the lead 1-0 with a score in the 31st minute. That score would remain to the end of the half and the goal was the only attempt of the 11 in total that was on frame (8-3 in favor of Trine).

Freshman goalkeeper Dillon Lambert (5-4-1) was tested early in the second half as he was credited with a save in the 47th minute. A foul inside the box allowed Murphy the opportunity to even the score with a penalty kick goal in the 52nd minute.

Sophomore defender Liam Zimmerman (a Second Team All-MIAA member) as well as Donovan forced the Comet goalkeeper to make a play on the ball, but the pesky Olivet team would counter with another goal to go up 2-1 in the 69th minute.

It was not long after that Murphy would draw the match back to even in the 71st minute. He bent a free kick around the defensive line and into the bottom corner of the net to make it 2-2 heading into the final stretch.

Junior midfielder Mohamed Aljably and sophomore defender Ryan Cote each had attempts late in the match, with Aljably's shot in the 86th minute on target and Cote's came in the closing seconds of regulation, but with both of them not finding paydirt, the teams played two 10-minute overtime periods.

Murphy took the first opportunity in the overtime period to strike first, but missed the net high. Olivet would secure the next opportunity and it was in the 93rd minute that the Comets took the lead once more. A throw in near the corner flag set up what acted as a set piece for the waiting Olivet attacker in the box who headed the ball into the back of the net.

The Comets would try to add on as without golden goal, the teams continued to battle into the Indiana night. They took two more attempts, one saved by Lambert, but they took the one-goal advantage into the final stretch of play.

Both teams had their chances in the second overtime period, but none better than in the final seconds of the match. The Thunder were awarded a free kick with six seconds left from just in front of midfield. Senior midfielder Francesco Mazzei, a First Team All-MIAA selection, accepted the free kick and the ball ended up in the back of the net after a scramble and collision by multiple players in the box. After a discussion by the officials, the goal was disallowed due to obstruction, which allowed the Comets to advance to the MIAA Tournament Finals.

After being ranked in the most recent NCAA Regional Rankings, Trine awaits their fate at the NCAA Selection Show on Monday, November 6 at 2 p.m.