Greenville, Pa. (September 10, 2009) – The Thiel College men's soccer team posted a, 1-1,  tie in Thursday's matchup against the Redhawks of LaRoche College.  The game stretched into two overtime periods as the men held off the strong offensive efforts of LaRoche's front line.

The defensive lineup for the Tomcats changed tonight as two returners were welcomed back after a four game hiatus.  Senior goalkeeper, Dave Rafle (Edinboro, Pa. / General McLane) showed a strong effort as he faced a barrage of shots by the LaRoche offense, Rafle tallied 13 saves by the end of the contest.  His biggest save of the night came just 12 seconds into the second overtime as Redhawk forward Jolo Reuben fired a shot toward the goal that was quickly voided by the Edinboro native.

Darwin Porras (Miami, Fla./Coral Reef) (Miami, FL. / Coral Reef) also returned tonight as he kept the Thiel defense sound throughout the match. 

Thiel's lone goal came off a Deighton Williams (Kingston, Jamacia/Kingston College) (Kingston, Jamacia / Kingston College) assist as Chad Swisher (Alliance, Ohio/Alliance) (Alliance, Oh. / Alliance )hustled past the Redhawks goalie to record his third goal of the season.  The score tied the game as both defenses would stand strong.  Thiel had two more scoring opportunities but both shots hit the post and fumbled out of bounds.

Thiel returns to action on Saturday when they face Muskingum College in New Concord, Ohio.