Late goal not enough for No. 21 Eagles to overcome No. 7 Young Harris

Late goal not enough for No. 21 Eagles to overcome No. 7 Young Harris

YOUNG HARRIS, Ga. – The fifth nonconference match-up of the season saw No. 21 Eagles' seven-game winning streak come to an end in a 3-1 loss on Wednesday night against the seventh-ranked Mountain Lions.

Carson-Newman (9-2-1, 6-0-1 SAC) was outshot for just the second time this season, allowing the most shots by an opponent as the Lions launched 25 on the evening compared to eight from C-N.

The loss snaps a nine-game unbeaten streak for the Eagles.

Val Feeney put the Mountain Lions on the board in the 18th minute. A throw in led to Mikie Rowe obtaining possession just long enough to send a short pass beyond the top of the 18-yard box for Feeney to send in a launch to the back right corner of the net for the goal.

The score marked the first opposition goal in 763:42 minutes of play, a span of eight total games dating back to Sept. 9 against Clayton State. The opposition's scoreless streak is the longest in program history, surpassing the previous record of five games which the team most recently achieved in 2006.

The Eagles went into the half trailing for the first time since Sept. 6. Young Harris (10-1-1, 4-0-0 Peach Belt Conference) outshot C-N 13-2 in the first 45 minutes, seven of its shots landing on goal compared to none from the Eagles.

"It took us a while to settle," head coach Stephen Lyons said. "Thought we were better in the second half and actually created some decent opportunities."

The first shot on goal for Carson-Newman came in the 54th minute when Joe Taylor's free kick after a Young Harris foul was saved by Iglesias.

Late in the second half, an offensive press led to Mehdy Hidane weaving through Eagle defenders before making a low shot from 18 yards out that was subsequently blocked by C-N's Twan Verweij. The block allowed Carlos Gomez to swoop in from the six-yard box to score.

After a foul followed a YHC corner kick, Marco Micaletto lined up for a penalty kick at the 79:06 mark, sending Verweij the wrong way as the ball sailed into the back of the net for a 3-0 lead.

With the clock ticking down, C-N regained possession of the ball off a header near midfield, landing near Tobias Solem Karlsen. He crossed the ball from the right side to the far post to a waiting Tom Read, sending in a shot past Alex Iglesias with one second remaining.

Read led the Eagles with three shots on the night, putting him at 196 shots attempted in his career. He is now tied for third on a C-N career records list with Dario Carrasco (2005-06). He now has seven goals on the season with 48 shots.

The Mountain Lions' three goals are the most goals allowed by Carson-Newman this season. The victory extends Young Harris' winning streak to eight games. The team is 1-1-1 against South Atlantic Opponents this season.

In the net for Young Harris, Iglesias was called upon to make just two saves on the eight shots he faced. On the other end of the pitch, Verweij was kept busy, saving a season high 12 of the 24 shots he faced.

"The lads didn't give up and worked until the last minute when we finally scored," Lyons mentioned. "We need to regroup and prepare for Saturday's conference game now."

The Eagles return home for Senior Night on Saturday against conference rival Wingate. That game will kick off at 7:30 p.m. at McCown Field. The Eagle Sports Network will provide a live broadcast along with live stats. Follow @CNathletics for updates throughout the match.