The Northern Virginia Royals rallied from two goals down to tie the New Jersey Rangers at Morris Catholic High School (NJ) on Sunday afternoon. AJ Sheta netted the equalizing goal in the waning minutes of the match, giving Northern Virginia their fourth even result on the road.

 

After dropping a 2-0 result to the Reading Rage the previous night, the Royals found themselves in another two-goal deficit in a game played only 18 hours later. Following a scoreless first half, the Rangers struck twice in the early minutes on an offensive flurry. New Jersey goals in the 55th and 68th minutes made a Royals comeback improbable.

 

Northern Virginia then began their comeback, pushing forward in a last ditch effort to get on the scoreboard. Royal forward Sean O’Reilly broke free down the right side and drove a low cross into the New Jersey penalty area. The intended pass deflected off a Ranger defender and rolled into the New Jersey net for Northern Virginia’s first goal of the weekend. 

 

As final minutes of the match wound down, the Royals offensive switched into a mode of absolute desperation to avoid another loss. Northern Virginia’s Kareem Sheta sent a long diagonal ball into the New Jersey defensive third, finding the feet of O’Reilly. O’Reilly cut into the Ranger goal area and flicked a ball over the defenders from 25 yards out. Royal AJ Sheta collected the ball in the air and placed the shot untouched past the charging Ranger keeper for the 2-2 draw.