CHESTER, Pa.– Eastern University Men's Soccer came into today's regular-season finale at Widener University knowing what was at stake. The Eagles needed to secure a win on the road for a second-straight Saturday. Today, they faced a talented and focused Widener team that needed at least a draw to earn a spot in the MAC Commonwealth Tournament. After falling behind by two goals early, the Eagles rallied to draw level, but could never grab the lead before ultimately falling 4-2.

"We were on top of them for the last part of the first half and the beginning of the second," Head Coach Luca Mellor said after the match. "We just did not have quite enough to get over the top."

The Pride grabbed the lead in the 10th minute on a cross and finish off the left side, they doubled that lead in the 22nd minute on another cross and finish from the left. This second goal was not without a bit of controversy as a Widener player was in the goal between Gabe Copley and the side of the goal where the ball wound up when the ball was struck. The officials went to video review and the goal stood.

Down two and needing the win, the Eastern bench made an aggressive tactical change to get more numbers forward. After a time, that change worked. The three Eastern forwards combined to grab back a goal in the 39th minute. Evan Cope played a long switching ball from the right side. Manny Pak ran down that serve, made a quick move and slashed a cross toward the near post. Zach Sievert timed his run perfectly and poked home his third goal of the year.

The Pride went to the locker room with a 2-1 lead and an 8-2 edge in shots.

In the 50th minute, Cope beat his mark off the right side and earned the box on the dribble. An attempted tackle led the referee to point to the spot. After another video review, the call was confirmed. Cope converted from the spot for his seventh goal of the year to knot the score.

The hosts grabbed the lead after a free kick from the left side. The Eagles won the initial challenge but could not clear the zone and the Pride grabbed a 3-2 edge with a half hour left. They doubled the lead on a penalty kick in the 77th minute.

Needing three goals in thirteen minutes, the Eagles threw even more weight forward in the game. Osmond Chan hit the crossbar with a header and Sievert and Cope put good efforts on target, but there would be no second comeback.

"We gave it a go," Mellor said. "We had to be better than them over 90 minutes. We had stretches where we were the better team on the field, We were a little unlucky on a couple of the goals today, but we had to be better for longer."

With the win, Widener (9-6-4, 4-2-1) secures the third seed in the MAC Commonwealth Tournament. They will be at York on Tuesday evening.