NEWBERRY – The Newberry Wolves men's soccer team picked up a huge win on Saturday night as they upset nationally ranked No. 12 Wingate at Smith Road Complex.

This was the first time since September 2011 that Newberry has beaten a ranked team. The Wolves defeated No. 9 Lander in a thrilling 2-1 victory in overtime. Newberry's 6-3 record is also the best start to a season since 2007, where they also went 6-3 .

Newberry got on the board in quick fashion to start the match. Just 45 seconds into the match, the Bulldogs committed a foul in the box and the Wolves were awarded a penalty kick. Junior Eric Brody was called upon to take the shot and connected to the left back corner to give Newberry the early 1-0 lead. 

Wingate was able to even out the momentum of the match in the 20th minute. Newberry made a crucial mistake and had a foul inside the box. This allowed the Bulldogs to have a penalty kick of their own. They would convert the attempt and tie the match at 1-1. 

In the second half the Wolves looked to have the momentum early and applied the pressure on the Bulldogs net. Wingate was able to stop the attack and the intensity of both sides seem to even out. 

The Wolves were able to score the go-ahead goal to retake the lead. Newberry had a free kick that was kicked toward the net. Sophomore Sam Ottley jumped to try to win the ball and headed the ball backwards to his Newberry teammates. Sophomore Ibrahim Nadir found the pass from Ottley and drove it into the back right corner of the net from six yards out for a 2-1 lead. 

Between the 70th and 71st minute was a crazy sequence of events. In the 70th minute, Newberry found the back of the net for the third time of the match. Once again Nadir was the one to score after beating a defender and shooting the ball at the top of the box. After the goal, Wingate was able to drive down the pitch before Newberry fouled them. The Bulldogs scored on the ensuing free kick just 38 seconds after Newberry's goal. The shot curved toward the top left corner of the net before going in to cut the lead down to 3-2. 

Both sides went back and forth going down the pitch to continue the pressure as time was winding down. Wingate was able to get one final shot off with three seconds left, but the shot went wide as time expired. 

After the match, head coach Bryce Cooper had this to say. "Big night for this program and one we felt has been coming now for sometime. Our guys executed the game plan to perfection and showed good moments of composure and quality in critical moments. We will build off this and continue to push toward our team objectives."
   
The Wolves will be off for a week before taking on Lenoir-Rhyne next Saturday at 5 p.m.