ROCHESTER, N.Y.– A 66th minute goal on a restart proved to be the difference as Eastern University Men's Soccer saw its dream season end with a 1-0 loss to the host No. 9 University of Rochester Yellowjackets in the third round of the NCAA Tournament. The loss is the first setback in over two months for the Eagles (18-3-2) who had been unbeaten in 18 matches in a row coming into the game.

With the narrow width of Rochester's stadium field, both teams worked for restart opportunities throughout the match. The Eagles had the edge in field position, possession, and chances through the opening half. Bryce Wahinya had a good look at the goal in the 40th minute, but his shot went high. Moments later, Jake Sankey volleyed a low corner kick from Andrew Fenstermacher toward the near post. Rochester senior goalkeeper Patrick Conway reacted well and kept the ball out of the goal with a good smother-save.

Eastern had a 5-2 edge in first-half shots and a 7-1 edge in corners. In addition to the chances on corners, the Eagles had several opportunites on long throws from Billy Walenda and Fenstermacher.

The second half saw chances level and the field position battle equalize, but the Eagles still had time on the ball in the attacking end. Liam Harmon and Cade Harmon both had moments of quality in the box narrowly miss creating goals against the solid Yellowjacket defense.

The hosts picked up the game winner following a seemingly innocuous foul near midfield. A good header off a long serve and a better volley beat Anthony Hitchcock from 15-yads out. The goal was just the 14th allowed by the Eagles in 23 matches this fall.

For the final 20 minutes, the Eagles chased the game with nearly reckless abandon. With the Eagles committing numbers to the attack, the Yellowjackets nearly missed doubling the lead on a transition chance that skimmed off the crossbar with a little more than 12 minutes to play.

By the end of the match, the Eagles had both Jake Sankey and Jacob Myers in the front row and were only three in the back. A last-chance header skimmed over the bar in the 90th minute and the Yellowjackets saw out the game to advance.

Coach Payne Says:
"This senior class has been great. They got here with me, but they had to transition when I got the job two years ago. They have been incredible. This is a great run for the program, but I believe that they have done a lot that will set us up for the future."

"We were on them early. We put a ton of pressure on through the first half and just could not get the goal. Credit to Rochester, they did to us what we have done to some of the better teams on our schedule. They were very organized, did not make a mistake in the back, and they took advantage of thier chances."

"To not have Colin [Furlong] and Sammy [Sutherland] today made some things tough, but we have a next-guy up mentality and our guys stepped up. I thought Zach Harley was really good in the midfield for us today. He won balls all day and did a nice job working with the guys in there. Julio Ardon and Matt Mitchell both did great work for us keeping the ball. We were prepared to play without Colin, but having Sammy ruled out right before game time was a different challenge."

Up Next:
The senior class went 62-14-9 in four years. In that time, the Eagles won three MAC Freedom Championships and advanced in the NCAA Tournament twice. In the 60-year history of the program, no group of athletes have had more consistent success. Before 2016, only one Eastern men's team (2007 Men's Soccer) had ever advanced in the NCAA Tournament.

Rochester will host top-ranked Messiah College tomorrow. The Falcons advanced to the Elite 8 with a 3-2 win over SUNY-Cortland in the 11:00 am game.