ST. DAVIDS, Pa.– Steven Fajardo headed home a Joåo Tarebel corner in the 87th minute to help a short-handed Eastern University Men's Soccer side salvage a 2-2 draw out of a spirited match against a young and improved Delaware Valley University side. The Eagles (3-3-3) battled back from two different one-goal deficits to earn the draw.

The Aggies (6-2-2) opened the scoring in the 19th minute and held that lead until intermission. While the visitors posted a 10-5 edge in first-half shots, Ty Bleiler's best work came in managing his box and being quick off the line to clear balls from danger. 

To equalize, Eagles capitalized on one of a series of restart chances from the left side of the field early in the second half. Tarebal provided the service to the back post, and Zch Chaplin redirected the initial header back into the goal-scoring area. Evan Cope pounced on the redirected ball and tucked it home for his fourth goal in his last four outings. The tally is the 25th of his career. 

Shortly after opening his account for the day, Cope had a tremendous chance off a threaded through ball from Stefan Williams, but his right-footed shot slipped just outside the upright. In the 56th minute Kade Seip had a diving header drift just wide of the other post after another restart chance from the left side. 

The whole match was played in a steady drizzle, but as the second half progressed, a steady wind developed to help the Aggies clear their zone and open up their shooting range. ON several occasions, balls that looked to be routine turned into complicated tasks. The Aggies scored off a long throw in the 82nd minute to once again lead. 

With less than nine minutes to play, the Eagles shifted tactics and threw even more numbers into the attack. Cope and Matt Capuano generated chances but were not able to test the keeper with their shots. Capuano's effort resulted in Eastern's first corner kick of the second half. Tarabel ripped his corner into tight space. With nearly every Eastern player in the box, Fajardo found space and buried a close-range header for his first goal of the year. 

Tarabel has five assists in his last three matches. 

Chaplin had a chance on a restart in the 89th minute, and the Eagles had a corner kick in the 90th minute. 

The Eagles will have a week to train and get some bodies back and healthy for their league-opener at Messiah University next Saturday.