JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. -- The Carson-Newman men's soccer team
dropped a 2-1 decision to Lincoln Memorial on Wednesday night in
South Atlantic Conference action at McCown Field.
With the loss, the Eagles fall to 4-3-1 overall and 2-1 in the SAC,
while the Railsplitters improve to 6-2 and 3-0 in conference
play.
"Lincoln Memorial is a very good and very experienced team," C-N
head coach Allen Vital said. "I thought that their experience
showed out there, and our youth got exposed. We couldn't capitalize
on the mistakes they made, and they were able to capitalize on
errors that we made. But our guys worked extremely, and I was
pleased with their effort."
The Eagles outshot Lincoln Memorial 15-7 on the night, including a
7-4 advantage in shots on goal. The match proved to be a physical
one, as the teams combined for 53 fouls.
Forward Willian Moura (Belo Horizonte, Brazil) put Lincoln Memorial
on the board early as he finished off a deflected shot from Aaron
McKenna (Birmingham, England) in the seventh minute to give the
Railsplitters a 1-nil lead.
C-N answered in the 41st minute, as forward Ben Backstrom's
(Knoxville, Tenn.) goal off a deflected header on a corner kick
tied the match at 1-1 heading into the locker room. Daniel Zitt
(Morristown, Tenn.) and Adam Thomas (Morristown, Tenn.) were
credited with the assist.
The Eagles controlled possession for most of the second half,
outshooting Lincoln Memorial 8-3, but the Railsplitters took
advantage of the few opportunities they had. Renato Segalla's
(Santo Andrew, Brazil) header off of a free kick found the back of
the net in the 55th minute, giving the Railsplitters the lead for
good at 2-1.
Lincoln Memorial goalkeeper Michael Watkins (Statesville, N.C.)
recorded five saves and gave up one goal to earn the win. C-N
keeper Jordan Moore (Hendersonville, Tenn.) surrendered two goals
and tallied two saves in the loss.
Despite the outcome, Vital was pleased with the support his team
received from a turnout of more than 600 fans.
"I want to thank everyone for coming out and supporting us," Vital
said. "It was fantastic. It was a great crowd and just a great
atmosphere."
C-N returns to the pitch on Saturday at home in a SAC matchup
against Lenoir-Rhyne. The contest is slated to start at 7 p.m. at
McCown Field.