Lynchburg, Va. -- After being down 1-0 after 80 minutes, the Lynchburg Men's Soccer reached deep down and found the drive to not give up as they scored twice in the last six minutes to defeat the Washington & Lee Generals and claim the ODAC Championship.

The Championship is the 15th in school history for Men's Soccer and earns the men an automatic bid into the NCAA Championship. The field will be announced on Monday at 1:00 p.m. with the NCAA Selection Show, click on the link below to view the live stream on Monday afternoon.

The atmosphere was charged as the supporters for both teams packed the stands and both teams warmed up with only one thought in mind...hoisting that trophy after the game.

Just two minutes in the Generals were awarded a free kick and went stright for goal but sophomore goalkeeper Dylan McLaurin was able to make the save and just three minutes later came of his line to halt another Washington & Lee attack.

The Generals struck first with a firecracker of shot from just inside the box that came from the right side and ended up in the left side netting.

The Hornets defense was tested all day as Washington & Lee was relentless for the first 45 minutes and on multiple occasions defenders had to make crucial tackles or clear the ball off the line. Senior Thomas Salamone was a part of one of those in the 30th minute. A W&L cross was heading for a wide open player but Salamone was able to clear and keep the Hornets in the game.

The best chance for Lynchburg came in the closing seconds of the first half as a service found its way into the box and was touched by a multitude of players on both teams and only needed a touch to cross the goal line but was cleared out by a W&L defender. The horn rang out for halftime and the score remained 1-0 in favor of Washington and Lee.

Lynchburg came out with a sense of urgency in the opening minutes of the second half as a cross was sent but cleared everyone but who other than senior Ben Grossfuss, chased down the ball and sent it back across goal. Junior Fredy Flores positioned himself perfectly and whipped his head onto the service but the Washington and Lee goalkeeper sprinted across the goal line to make a diving save and deny the equalizing goal.

A great show of teamwork in the 74th minute gave the Hornets their next best chance after junior Collin Kashmer and sophomore Clay Van Gieson played a game of give and go resulting in a shot being uncorked by Van Geison but again the W&L keeper protected his team's lead, knocking the ball away for a corner. With 10 minutes left the Hornets began pushing up and launching balls into the box. One service found junior Ryan Mayolo who snapped a header that beat the keeper but rode along the crossbar and then cleared away for a corner.

With the continual pressure on the Washington and Lee defense, the momentum slowly creeped into Lynchburg's favor. With the Lynchburg fans in the crowd and on the track creating noise, the players fed off the energy and were able to capitalize. Just seconds into the 84th minute, Mayolo sent in a cross from the left side and Grossfuss tracked the ball and launched himself vertically beating his man skyward and smashed a header into the top right corner of the goal. The stadium erupted into an absolute frenzy, it became so loud the referees had trouble communicating and the horn for substitutions was not heard by anyone.

The game got back underway and both teams began looking to find a way to get the game-winning score. Both sides made multiple substitutions, hoping the fresh pair of legs could be the key to creating the goal.

After earning a throw in just beyond the W&L bench, Lynchburg crowded the box and awaited a throw in from their throw in specialist, sophomore Dan Friedberg. The second-year midfielder took a few steps from the line and made his run forward, releasing the ball at the apex of his throw. The ball went sailing into the box and freshman Jack Ashby flicked it with his head behind him. The ball took one bounce and a W&L defender went to clear it but mistimed his leg swing and the ball was redirected off his leg and took two bounces and into the net.

The reaction from the crowd after the first Lynchburg goal was loud but the response following the own goal was deafening. Any type of communication had to be from mouth to ear anywhere on the field.

Following the goal, the roles switched and the Generals became the team looking to find the back of the net to keep their season alive. They were able to keep the ball in the Lynchburg half but the Hornets defense, which is ranked 7th in the nation, denied Washington and Lee any chances to get the equalizer.

As the time began to dwindle, the fans began to count down with the clock and as the horn sounded, chaos ensued. The Hornets rushed the field and wound up celebrating with the students that were awaiting their arrival against the ropes on the track. Water bottles were sent skyward and Head Coach Chris Yeager was doused with water in celebration.

After the celebration died down, the All-Tournament team was announced. The Hornets honored were McLaurin, sophomore Ryan Pikunas, Grossfuss and junior Nate Berning.

The Hornets were led by Grossfuss, Mayolo and Flores who each contributed with two shots each while freshman Michael Thompson, Berning, Friedberg and Van Gieson registered a shot a piece.

With the victory the Hornets improve to 16-1-4 and earn the Old Dominion Athletic Conference's automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament which starts the weekend of Nov. 12-13 with the First and Second Rounds.

To find out who the Lynchburg Men's Soccer team will be playng in their First Round game, click the link below to watch the NCAA Selection Show for the Division III Men's Soccer Championship which will air on Monday, Nov. 7th at 1:00 p.m.

NCAA Division III Men's Soccer Tournament Selection Show