WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. (Oct. 29, 2010) – Erkko Puranen scored in the 99^th minute to help No. 12 Monmouth defeat the Saint Francis men's soccer team, 2-1, in overtime on Friday afternoon on The Great Lawn in West Long Branch, N.J.

After falling behind on Ryan Kinne's goal in the 35^th minute, the Red Flash received a big boost from freshman Tobi Iguade (Bowie, Md./DeMatha Catholic) (Bowie, Md. / DeMatha Catholic), who returned from missing several games with an injury to score his second goal of the season in the 83^rd minute.

Iguade hit a loose ball from 25 yards out that went into the lower right corner to tie the match at 1-1.

Saint Francis fell out of a first place tie with the loss, which dropped it to 9-5-1 overall and 5-2-1 in the Northeast Conference. The 12^th-ranked Hawks improved to 11-1-2 overall and 5-0-2 in the league. The Red Flash will return to action at 2:30 p.m. on Monday when they play host to Mount St. Mary's in their final home game of the season at the Stokes Soccer Complex.

“It is never easy to lose in overtime, but I am pleased with our effort and performance,” said Saint Francis head coach Michael Casper. “This was a tough loss. However, we have to pick ourselves up and get ready for the Mount.

Sophomore goalkeeper Daniel Valcicak (Herndon, Va./Gonzaga College) (Herndon, Va. / Gonzaga College) stopped three shots for the Red Flash.

Monmouth held a 9-6 edge in shots, while both teams had six corner kicks.

For periodic men's soccer updates and other Red Flash news, follow Director of Athletic Communications Bob Volkert on Twitter at SFUVolkert.