NEW LONDON, Conn. –

In a hard-nosed playoff battle, the Coast Guard Bears came out victorious to punch their ticket to the NEWMAC semifinals.

"Great result for the guys tonight!" Coach Parsons said after the game. "We started fast and went ahead. Give Emerson credit - they stuck to their low block and countered on us twice scoring two good goals. We changed some tactics at the half and got the equalizer. From there I thought we were the team that was going to win. Great goal for the victory. Lots of GRIT by our boys"

Playing Emerson for the second time in just six days, Coast Guard was determined to not have the same result as they had last Thursday when the Bears were unable to score a goal. Just two minutes into the battle, junior Attacker Aki Freeman(San Diego, CA) gave the Bears an early 1-0 lead. Freeman hammered the ball into the back of the net off a great pass from Andres Villasana(Ponte Vedra Beach, FL). 

The Bears lead, however, would not last long. 10 minutes later, the Lions would tie the score at 1-1 when Riler Selmon took a pass from Theodore Bushera and just squeaked the ball past a diving John Putnam(Halfmoon, NY). The Lions would take their first lead of the evening in the 28th minute when Thomas Pelino took advantage of a CGA defensive lapse and buried the ball into the back of the net. 

The score would remain 2-1 Emerson at the half but the Lions nearly earned a two score lead with 7:54 remaining in the half when an Emerson opportunity missed just wide. 

Coming out of the half, Coast Guard earned opportunity after opportunity with inspired play on offense and seemed destined to score. With just under 42 minutes remaining, junior defender Aidan Miles(Tampa, FL) sent a perfect throw from the sideline into the box and the cluster of Bears players nearly connected to tie the score. After several other possessions on the Emerson side of the field, the Bears nearly found the net again when freshman Nicholas Yorgason(Pleasant View, UT) skillfully earned an opportunity in the box and was barely stopped on a great Emerson defensive effort. 

After 15 minutes of high octane, fiery play, the Bears finally tied the score like they seemed destined to do from the start of the half. Much like earlier in the game when Emerson capitalized on a slight defensive lapse, Coast Guard did the same. The Bears team leader in goals, Aki Freeman beat the only defender between himself and the goalkeeper and sent a point blank shot past the diving Lions goalkeeper to knot the score at 2-2.

The Freeman goal gave the already surging Bears all of the momentum. Less than two minutes after Aki scored, Andres Villasana nearly did the same but a leaping save from Emerson goalkeeper Beckett Hobbs deflected the ball just over the post. On the subsequent corner, CGA nearly took the lead again when senior Jude Sargent(West Hartford, CT) leaped, got a head on the ball, and fell just short of a goal despite an exceptional effort. 

With 27 minutes to go in the evening, after dominating possession, the Bears again came oh so close to securing the lead. Senior tri-captain Michael O'Brien(Mays Landing, NJ) took a free kick from about 10 yards outside the box, bent the ball towards the goal, and just nicked the left post to fall wide. 

For the next 17 minutes, each team exchanged punches with the defenses cracking down and playing intense, tough, well disciplined ball to keep eachother from scoring. The Bears however, nearly broke through with 10:56 remaining on a Andres Villasana shot that sail just high over the goal. 

With both squads continuing to play ferocious defense, the teams got down under five minutes in the game before the Bears again gained the momentum and came painfully close to winning in regulation. With 3:25 remaining, a controversial foul call took away a goal from Michael O'Brien but the man they call "OB" would soon find himself with another opportunity in the closing minutes of regulation. He again nearly scored with 2:13 remaining. Finally, after CGA dominated possession the entire half, Aki Freeman sent a perfect cross to the front of the goal with just one minute remaining but no one could get a foot on the ball and the heavyweight battle would go to overtime.

In overtime, the Bears did not seem to lose any momentum, starting with a fire lit under them just like they played the entire 2nd half. They did not waste much time either with sophomore Jack Lopez(Ponte Vedra Beach, FL) sending a picture perfect pass towards fellow sophomore Cole Miller(Annapolis, MD), which Miller sent screaming into the back of the Emerson net for an overtime playoff victory and birth in the NEWMAC Semifinals at #2 Salve Regina with whom the Bears tied 1-1 just two weeks ago.