ST. DAVIDS, Pa. – Eastern University Men's Soccer fell behind early and was unable to dig out in a 2-0 home loss to future conference rival Stevenson. The Mustangs (6-2-1) scored in the eleventh minute and again in the 87th to earn the win in the first match betwen the two programs since 2011.
How It Happened:
The Eagles (4-5-1) started slowly, but the opening goal did not seem to be much in the set up. The Mustangs earned a throw in on the right flank and brought a defender forward to take the throw. No player from either team met the ball in the air but Stevenson's Alex Morales met the bouncing ball in the middle of the box and pushed home a right-footed volley for the go-ahead tally.
The Eagles showed life as the half progressed, but it was Stevenson that had the next great chance. Anthony HItchcock stopped a hard shot from twelve yards out that seemed destiend for the lower corenr in the 34th minute.
Emmanuel Hewitt gave the Eagles energy and service on the left side in the later moments of the first half and
Bryce Wahinya curled a ball just over the upper corner in the 39th minute.
It seemed that the Eagles had their equalizing break on a restart from the left side in the 54th minute. Matt Mitchell served the ball into the box and
Derek Buhrman challenged for it. The center official initially pointed to the spot for a penalty kick, but after discussion with his assistant, gave the Eagles a corner instead. The Eagles had a 4-1 edge in second-half corner kicks.
Eight minutes later,
Alessandro Truppi served a ball to the back post. It seemed that two Eastern players would have a chance to finish it, but neither was able to get the ball on frame from five yards out. With the Eagles pushing forward with numbers, Hewitt had a shot in the 70th minute that was turned away.
After a red card in the 85th minute, the Eagles were down a goal and down a man. The Eagles pushed forward and had a final restart after Mitchell was fouled, but they were unable to convert and Stevenson got a goal from DR Medtart in transition to ice the match.
With Eastern changing sides of the MAC, Eastern and Stevenson will be in the same league next fall.
Coach Payne Says:
"A lot of things to learn from today. We see how hard it is when we put ourselves in a hole by not dealing with a set piece and going down early. Our first 10 minutes was not our best and as a result we were caught playing from behind the whole match."
"We played well in the second half. There was more tempo and energy. We generated more chances. We failed to put shots on goal and test the keeper but the chances created was there. We were caught chasing the game and putting numbers forward in the final minutes of the game. As a result, it left us exposed at the back and we conceded a goal."
"I am very disappointed with our performance from a result standpoint. [I am ] Even more disappointed of how we finished the game. The way we carried ourselves wasn't good and it fell short of what the standard and expectations are for our program."
"We will be without Mitchell and McGlynn for the Catholic match (for card suspensions). That game was already gonna be tough. We will have to do a lot of things right to get a result."
Up Next:
The Eagles are at Catholic on Tuesday. They will start their final trip through the MAC Freedom with a rematch of the 2018 Championship match at King's College on Saturday.
