ASHEVILLE, N.C. --- Ali Al-Gashamy (Kristiansand, Norway) got the Runnin' Bulldogs off to a flying start with his team-leading third goal of the season early in the first half, as UNC Asheville rallied to force a 1-1 draw with Gardner-Webb in Big South Conference action on Saturday evening.
Gardner-Webb (1-6-1, 0-1-1 Big South) controlled the run of play for much of the match, outshooting UNC Asheville (1-5-2, 0-2-1 Big South) by a 27-8 margin in the contest, including a 12-2 advantage in the second half. The Runnin' Bulldogs also held a 6-3 edge in corners through 110 minutes of play.
Al-Gashamy paced the Runnin' Bulldogs with his squad-best third goal of the season, attempting 10 shots and putting six on frame, as Nathan Rose (Bristol, England) added an assist on the strike. Denzel Clarke (Atlanta, Ga.) made five attempts at goal, including three on frame, as Jerome Roche (Salon-de-Provence, France) put both of his efforts on target. Matthew Swan (Newport, South Wales, United Kingdom) made two saves.
Victor Aquiar found the back of the net for Asheville in the contest, attempting a team-high four shots, while Paul Egle added an assist. Dan Jackson made 12 saves in the contest for the Bulldogs.
Al-Gashamy opened the scoring midway through the seventh minute, getting the Runnin' Bulldogs off to a flying start when he slotted home off a feed from Rose. Gardner-Webb would continue to push forward over the next 30 minutes, peppering the Asheville net with a total of 10 shots in the first half while limiting Asheville's forays into its defensive third.
Asheville struck against the run of play just before halftime, when Egle fed Aquiar off a free kick, putting the freshman in position to net the equalizer and send the teams into the interval level at 1-1.
Gardner-Webb kept pushing in the second half, forcing Jackson into six saves, including back-to-back stops on Roche in the 70th and 71st minutes. Al-Gashamy and Clarke nearly provided the winner late on in the 87th minute, only to be denied by two superb stops from Jackson as the teams ended regulation knotted at 1-1.
Al-Gashamy produced the only significant chance of the first extra time period, ringing the bar with a brilliant effort in the 96th minute. The Runnin' Bulldogs were unlucky once again in the second extra time stanza, as Patrick Gurser (Frankfurt, Germany) was denied by the woodwork in the 103rd minute before Jackson expertly parried a blast from Clarke in the 109th to force the draw.
Gardner-Webb is back in action on Tuesday, when the Runnin' Bulldogs take a break from Big South play for a non-conference tilt against North Carolina State at 7:00 pm in Raleigh, N.C.
