An overtime goal by senior midfielder Will Kelly (Seattle, WA) sealed a victory for the University of Redlands men's soccer team as the Bulldogs bested Whittier College, 2-1, in Wednesday evening's Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) Postseason Tournament semifinal contest in Whittier.

Despite holding the upper hand in shots, 18-13, the Poets were unable to outchance Redlands in the end.

With both teams playing with their seasons on the line, the referees allowed the game to play out, charging just 15 total fouls on the match.

Whittier outshot Redlands in the first half, 8-5, but the Maroon and Gray made the most of its scoring opportunities, converting on one of its five chances.

The Bulldogs jumped out to the early 1-0 lead when junior defender Danny Connors (Lake Oswego, OR) ripped Kelly's centering pass from the right wing inside the far post. Connors' goal, which came in the 20th minute, proved to be his first of the season.

Whittier's second half featured a motivated offensive attack, which Redlands fought to weather.

In the 62nd minute, the Poets earned an opportunity to even the score, but senior goalkeeper Evan Hobson (San Diego, CA) kept the Whittier offense in check. Joshua Dredge uncorked a shot that caromed off of Hobson, and just moments later, Shea Harwell unleashed an attempt at point-blank range that Hobson also turned away.

Redlands also caught a chance to swing the momentum in its favor later on in the second stanza. Kelly won a ball in the midfield and distributed it to freshman midfielder Gabe Ramirez (La Crescenta, CA), who was open on the left side. Ramirez squared and fired from the left wing, but a Whittier defender put a foot on the attempt in front of the goal to prevent the Maroon and Gray from holding a commanding advantage.

With just 1:14 left in regulation, Srdan Jovanovic evened the score at one, taking Sam Russell's header past the goal line.

After the clocked winded down in regulation, the Bulldogs found themselves in a familiar scenario: facing an overtime situation with the season on the line.

The Maroon and Gray wasted no time as senior defender Jeff Willey (Medina, WA) found the feet of Kelly in the 94th minute, and Kelly laced a hard shot right outside of the 18 that hit a Whittier defender before trickling into the goal.

Hobson guarded the Bulldog net for the full 90 minutes, notching eight saves. Whittier's Michael Read took the loss in goal for the Poets despite making three stops.

With the triumph, Redlands extends its unbeaten streak to nine games, which dates back to Oct. 7. In addition, the Maroon and Gray has won each of its past three conference postseason tournament games in overtime

The Poets (9-5-4, 8-2-4 SCIAC) had an impressive run during the 2009 season, stringing together a stretch of 11 consecutive matches without a loss. The conference's Cinderella tale this season, Whittier improved upon its seventh-place 2008 campaign and pieced together a second-place finish in 2009.

Redlands' (10-6-4, 8-3-3 SCIAC) season marches on with the victory, and the team will face No. 4 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges on Saturday in the SCIAC Postseason Tournament final. Game time is contingent upon the result of the women's soccer team's match tomorrow.