Nov. 7, 2010
Final Stats | Photo Gallery 
Green jerseys littered the pitch following Siena's men's soccer game, but this was not a scene of celebration. Brandon Wellington finished off a rebound amid a flurry of action just under seven minutes into Sunday's extra session capping off an improbable 4-3 comeback win for Niagara that cost the Saints their first MAAC regular-season title.
Instead, the Saints fell to 7-2 in the MAAC (10-7-1 overall) and are forced to settle for the #2 seed in next weekend's MAAC Championship. They face #3 seed Iona, a 2-0 winner over Loyola today, Friday in Baltimore. Top-seed Saint Peter's plays the fourth-seeded, and host, Greyhounds in the other semifinal.
Siena seemed well on its way to the outright regular-season crown when Steve Covino beat keeper Jacob Vertel in the lower left corner with just over 21 minutes to go for a 3-1 lead. But Niagara's Liam Gilbert scored twice in just 18 seconds to tie the score.
Gilbert's first goal came with just over 11 minutes remaining in regulation. He took advantage of an errant pass by a Siena defender and easily beat Phil Chabot to make it a one goal game. The Siena defender attempted to head the ball back to Chabot, but did not hit it hard enough, allowing Gilbert to beat Chabot to the ball and score in an empty net.
Before Siena could regroup, he touched home a long cross from Levi Tesch to tie the score and complete a hat trick.
Neither team managed a serious threat the rest of regulation.
In the overtime, Siena had a huge opportunity just over a minute in when Emery Welshman sprung Joey Tavernese with a perfect pass down the left side, but Tavernese hard shot was saved by Vertel.
Welshman scored the first two goals of the game, helping Siena to a 1-0 halftime lead and 2-0 advantage when he scored off a rebound in the 52nd minute.
Wellington's goal came after a good chance was stopped by Chabot and the ball ricocheted to the center of the box. He made a quick strike that Chabot had no chance at. As the ball hit the back of the net, Siena players collapsed in disbelief, their chance at a regular-season title and #1 seed had vanished in the blink of an eye.
