BABSON PARK, Fla. (September 21, 2019) – The Webber International University men's soccer team led 1-0 before needing to come back from a 2-1 halftime deficit against Ave Maria University on Saturday, but in the end, the Warriors came out on top 3-2 over the Gyrenes in overtime.

The winning goal came five minutes and 17 seconds into the overtime period thanks to Alvaro Nagel Diaz, who took the ball after a gorgeous pass by Mateo Fernandez Sassoni.

In all, both teams had to make a save and a block during the overtime frame before Nagel Diaz's match-winner.

It was Nagel Diaz's first career goal as a Warrior while Fernandez Sassoni sits already with five assists in six matches so far this year.

Additionally, Fernandez Sassoni's assist on the match-winner in overtime was actually his second assist of the day.

After the Warriors went into halftime trailing 2-1 when the Gyrenes scored twice in a less than five-minute span late in the first half, Fernandez Sassoni dribbled through the defense to split the ball to Matheus Gomes for the match-tying goal in the 62nd minute. It was the third goal of the season for Gomes, a senior from Orlândia, Brazil.

Webber's first goal less than 15 minutes into the match came from senior Orian Burzic, who shot from inside the 18 after a short pass from Ivan Bonanken. It was the first goal of the year for Burzic and was the second assist of the year by Bonanken.

There were a ton of shot attempts in this one, with AMU actually outshooting the Warriors 26-22 overall and 11-9 in shots on goal, resulting in a career-high nine saves for Webber's freshman goalkeeper, Felipe Freiria.

Webber's Head Men's Soccer Coach Neil Cockburn said following the match, "It was ugly for us when we were unable to getting anything going tactically, however, we will take the win. The boys never gave up and earned that win today."

It was the final match before starting official Sun Conference play for both Webber (5-1 overall) and Ave Maria (0-6-1). Additionally, the win for the Warriors improved Webber to 12-1-1 all-time against the Gyrenes after starting the series between the two teams with 11 straight wins dating back to 2008 before tying 2-2 in 2017 and falling 4-3 in 2018.

Webber will now set its sights on a very tough matchup against No. 17 Southeastern University at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, September 25, in Lakeland, Florida. It will be The Sun Conference opener for both teams as the undefeated Fire will bring their 5-0-1 overall record into the matchup.