ST. DAVIDS, Pa.– Eastern University Men's Soccer scored first, but the visiting Cairn University Highlanders secured a 1-1 draw with a second-half goal.
Evan Cope scored the lone goal for the shorthanded Eagles (3-3-2).
The Eagles had the better of play through the early moments of the game and with a suffocating press kept the Highlanders (2-2-4) pinned deep in their own end.
Ethan Pfau beat the Cairn goalkeeper with an effort in the 19th minute, but his left-footed blast caromed off the bottom of the right post out past the top of the penalty box.
Just after the midpoint of the half, Cope broke through. The senior forward ran behind the Cairn back line onto a brilliant pass from Joåo Tarabel off the left wing. Cope received the ball with his right and found the back post with his left for his third goal in the last three games. Tarabel takes the team lead in assists with his third helper on the year.
While the Eagles had other chances in the half, the visitors did as well. Shortly after Cope's tally, Ty Blieler had to make a foot save on a shot from close range against Highlander forward Jesse Brittain, and the guests had two shots drift just wide in the final minute of the half.
The Highlanders rode the momentum of the end of the half into the second frame. Early int he half, Bleiler made two great reaction saves off Brittain. The second of those saves came after Moses Beers rattled the goal frame with a 35-yard free kick off the crossbar.
The guests found their equalizer in the 69th minute. After a joust for a loose ball at midfield resulted in a Cairn free kick. The Highlanders made a couple passes and then set a long ball into the box. The ball had the Eastern center backs drifting back and Bleiler coming out. Cairn forward Brock Burris slid in between the three and his header drifted into the top of the net.
Bleiler turned away Brittain in the 72nd minute, and neither team was able to put a shot on goal the rest of the way.
With
Osmond Chan and
Zach Sievert out of the lineup,
Adedotun Adelekan went the full 90 minutes in the back of the midfield.
Cairn finished with a 19-9 edge in shots. Bleiler finished with six saves. Eastern and Cairn have now tied the last two matches between the two sides on Olson Field. Eastern last beat Cairn in 2021.
The Eagles will host Delaware Valley University this Saturday in a final non-league test before opening the MAC Commonwealth schedule at Messiah in October.
