For both teams in the Yale-Providence men’s soccer game, three minutes proved to be the charm.

The Elis (3-5-3, 0-2 Ivy) fell into an early 1-0 deficit when Providence College (5-5-2, 2-4-1 Big East) scored in the third minute of play during Tuesday’s away match. But the Bulldogs finally answered with a goal of their own with three minutes remaining in the second half, and they held on through double overtime to secure a 1-1 tie.

“It was a difficult game,” head coach Brian Tompkins said. “As the game wore on, we started to believe in ourselves a little more. I think we showed some real character and backbone in the late part of the game, and our goal came because of our persistence and perseverance.”

Yale is 0-3-2 in overtime matches this season, most recently suffering a 2-1 loss to Dartmouth in an extra period last Saturday. That loss made Tuesady night’s 1-1 tie against Big East team Providence all the more satisfying for the Elis.

“We just expected it to be competitive, and we always expect to win, but it was good that we tied,” captain and midfielder Jordan Raybould ’10 said of the game. “We didn’t really change our game plan … You never want to have to chase a game.”

Providence grabbed a quick lead when midfielder Matt Marcin headed a cross into the right side of the net just minutes into play. And for nearly the rest of the game, it looked like that lead was going to hold.

Yale struggled to get a shot on net in the opening 45 minutes, as attempts by forwards Aden Farina-Henry ’11 and Scott Armbrust ’13, and midfielder Jon Carlos ’10, all went wide of the goal.

The Friars also were unable to make more offensive headway during the first period, and the half closed with the home team up 1-0. Providence outshot Yale 7-3 and recorded a 2-1 advantage in corners.

The Friars increased their pressure after the halftime restart but proved no match for Bulldog goalkeeper Travis Chulick ’10, who tallied six saves during the next 45 minutes — two within the first 20 seconds of the second period.

“Travis was outstanding in goal today,” Tompkins said. “He made probably four or five superb saves and really kept us in the game. When it was 1-0, he prevented Providence from getting any more goals and allowed us to fight our way back.”

Chulick’s best save came in the 71st minute when he stopped a shot taken by Providence midfielder Daniel Fabian from point-blank range.

“A lot of [Travis’ saves] were really close, point-blank saves, which require not only good technique but also a high level of courage and bravery,” Tompkins said.

While Chulick and the Yale defenders kept the Friar’s lead to one goal, Raybould got the offense going and notched the Eli’s first shot on net in the 68th minute.

Providence regained control for roughly the next 20 minutes and took another three attempts at the Bulldogs’ net.

“There was a large chunk of time in the second half where they had control, but we did a good job just weathering the storm,” defender Andy Hackbarth ’12 said.

Still, as the end of the second half neared, the Friars looked like they had it made — they had been outshooting Yale 10-2 during the period with less than five minutes remaining in the game.

But then the Elis found an opening, and forward Brad Rose ’11 was there to capitalize.

With 3:32 left in the second half, Rose took a shot from 22 yards out that was deflected before finding its way into the left corner of the net. This was the junior’s third goal of the season, second on the team behind Armbrust, who has five. Rose also leads the team with four assists.

A minute later, Rose almost won the match, but his header clanged off the crossbar and the game went into overtime.

“Brad played well,” Hackbarth said. “He worked to combine with his fellow forwards, whether Scott or Aden. He worked really hard pressuring their defenders into making mistakes.”

The second half’s late spurt of offensive momentum was exactly what Tompkins wanted, and was an effort he said he hoped would extend into overtime.

“Games are won in moments of execution,” Tompkins said. “Anytime we go into an overtime game, we are looking to make sure we continue to execute defensively but take advantage of any key offensive opportunities.”

Yet neither side managed to take advantage of those chances during the next 20 minutes of play.

The Elis return to Reese Stadium on Saturday when they kick off an Ivy League contest against Cornell at 7 p.m.