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BALTIMORE — Three weeks ago, the Loyola College men's soccer team was ranked sixth in the country and the UNCG Spartans were seventh in their own conference.

Guess who's still alive in the NCAA tournament.

UNCG became the first team in the tournament's 50-year history to win twice after entering the draw with a losing record, claiming a stunning 2-1 overtime win Tuesday night on reserve midfielder Corey Maret's goal just 2:11 into the extra period. The Spartans (10-11-2) trailed for 50 straight minutes before Jokull Elisabetarson's constant pressure exacted a toll and contributed to Nirav Kadam's tying score with 16 minutes left in regulation. Then, they figured, if they were going to drive 300 miles and hang out in freezing temperatures for a couple of hours, they might as well survive. Or so they told themselves as they prepared to take the field for OT.

"We had the overall aura around us that we were going to win," Maret said.

That's a feeling this team seldom had until the Southern Conference tournament started on Nov. 14. The Spartans endured a 300-minute scoring drought in midseason and entered the postseason on a three-game losing streak. Coach Michael Parker, who has generally chosen frank discourse over diplomacy in a 33-year career of considerable distinction, essentially challenged his bunch to regain the program's dignity.

"Our season was very poor," Parker said. "Very disappointing. We definitely underachieved. We had lost respect among ourselves. But now we're playing like the Greensboro of old: with fire, with determination and, above all, with a will not to lose."

The Spartans, with whom most of the nation's 201 Division I programs would happily trade places today, advance to this weekend's third round against South Florida, a 2-1 winner over Harvard on Tuesday.

The NCAA will announce the site today and is likely to assign the Spartans to another road trip.

The Greyhounds (18-2-1) earned the ninth seed in the 48-team field by virtue of an undefeated regular season, and they had considerable reason to believe they'd hang on after taking a 1-0 lead into the second half. Loyola had already won five games by that score in 2008, and Parker suggested the Greyhounds became conservative after halftime of this one.

"I felt they contributed to their own downfall a bit by sitting back," Parker said. "They took their foot off the gas.

"We were handily beaten in the first half. Very one-sided. Only one-sided in the first half. But you know what? It was one-sided in the second half, too."

And that meant Elisabetarson, the senior from Iceland who is as close to a consistent scoring threat as his club has, began taking ownership of the midfield. If he didn't win loose balls from the Greyhounds, he chased them down. After outshooting the visitors 11-1 in the first half, Loyola found itself playing defense and hoping to keep the Spartans scoreless.

Elisabetarson ended that idea when he made a quick pivot at the top of the box to get free. Goalkeeper Milos Kocic saved the resulting shot but couldn't control it. The rebound went right to Kadam, who one-timed it home with 16 minutes left and ultimately necessitated overtime.

"All we did was up the momentum, the effort, the pressure, the work rate, everything," Parker said. "That combined with their sitting back, and you saw the difference."

The Spartans saw no reason to hang back and hope for penalty kicks, and Maret was in the right spot when a shot slammed off a Greyhound defender. His shot form the top of the box found a home in the right corner of the net, and a celebration resulted.

The win was the program's second over a seeded and homestanding team in the past three NCAA tournaments. UNCG won at West Virginia in 2006, and it has now equaled its best performance in a Division I championship. The Spartans made the third round in 2004, '05 and '06.

Contact Rob Daniels at 373-7028 or rob.daniels@news-record.com

UNCG 2, Loyola (Md.) 1 (OT)

UNCG 0 1 1 — 2

Loyola (Md.) 1 0 0 — 1

Goals: LC — Bannister (Darville) 24:23; UNCG — Kadam (Elisabetarson) 73:55; UNCG — Maret (unassisted) 92:11.

Shots: UNCG 11, Loyola 17.

Saves: UNCG 5 (Berry 5), Loyola 2 (Kocic 2).

Corner kicks: UNCG 4, Loyola 4.

Fouls: UNCG 8, Loyola 8.

Records: UNCG 10-11-2, Loyola (Md.) 18-2-1.