Anderson, Mars Hill Advance In Food Lion SAC Men’s Soccer Tournament
ROCK HILL, S.C. - Both South Atlantic Conference men's soccer regular-season co-champions were knocked out of the 2010 Food Lion SAC Tournament Friday night, as third-seed Anderson University knocked off second-seed Carson-Newman College, 2-0, while fifth-seed Mars Hill College upset top-seed Wingate University, 2-1.
Sunday's championship match will feature Mars Hill against Anderson at Manchester Meadows at 4 p.m. Anderson will be competing in its first South Atlantic Conference tournament championship, while Mars Hill will be making its second straight appearance in the men's soccer title game.
No. 5 Mars Hill 2, No. 1 Wingate 1
Shadi Harb (San Andres, Columbia) gave MHC a 1-0 lead at the 43:12 mark on a penalty kick. That would be all the scoring the match would see in the first half of play.
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Carson-Newman's Tyson Adkinson dribbles between two Anderson defenders during Friday's semifinal match. Photo by Kristen Hines Baker. |
Stephens Bivens (Douglasville, Ga.) scored what would later prove to be the match winner on a follow off a deflection at the 83:32 mark. Isaiah Schafer (Lakewood, Colo.) sent the ball in to set up the score.
Three minutes later (86:20), Fabricio Barancoski (Sao Paulo, Brazil) cut the deficit to 2-1 on an unassisted goal, finding the net from 20 yards out. The Lions' defense held strong in the final minutes and the Lions advance to the finals.
Zac Scott (Pittsboro, N.C.) played 90 minutes in goal for MHC and made five saves. Joey Calandra (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) also played the entire match in the net and made one save.
The Bulldogs out shot the Lions 21-12. Wingate had eight corner kicks as opposed to MHC who had only one. The Lions were called offsides three times while the Bulldogs were whistled offsides once.
Mars Hill improved to 14-4-1. Wingate drops to 15-3 on the year with the loss.
Mars Hill Coach Ian Clerihew
(On beating Wingate in five of the last six meetings) "I think our guys just get up for it. They're a fantastic team and our guys know they have to really compete in this game and do the little things, or else we're not going to get the result."
"We hit a spell where we lost three in a row that were meaningful games. It took us a little bit to rebound from that. We certainly have done that and I'm very proud."
(On playing Anderson in the championship) "They're a great team. We lost 4-2 there, they're a tough matchup, but I know our guys will be ready."
No. 3 Anderson 2, No. 2 Carson-Newman 0
After a scoreless first half, Anderson got on the scoreboard when Clement Samson (Vannes, France) connected from 20-yards out on a breakaway off a long pass from Scott Clapperton (Edinburgh, Scotland) in the 54th minute.
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Mars Hill's Rury Caufield looks for an opening against the Wingate defense during Friday's match. Photo by Kristen Hines Baker. |
Nine minutes later, the Trojans added an insurance goal when Shu Ogawa (Kanagawa, Japan) recorded his first goal of the season when he fired a shot just under the crossbar into net.
Carson-Newman out-shot Anderson 21-16, including a 9-6 advantage in the second half. Carson-Newman also had the edge in shots on goal, taking 11 to Anderson's eight.
Anderson improves to 13-5-1 on the season. Carson-Newman falls to 12-5-1 and will have to wait until Monday to find out if it will receive an invitation to the NCAA Tournament.
Anderson reserve goalie Benjamin Pepion worked 81 minutes in the net to pick up the win, filling in after starter Lukas Hessee was injured eight and a half minutes into the match with a possible broken nose. Pepion notched five saves to pick up the victory.
Carson-Newman goalie Jordan Moore recorded six saves.
The match was hotly contested on both sides, with 27 total fouls, five yellow yards and two red cards.
Anderson Coach Rob Miller
"Benjamin's been a starter throughout his career and he played very well today. He's a great shot-stopper and he's got experience. He handled the pressure well for us and played very solid."
(Second-half play) "We started playing a little different. We spread the game out more. They defend very well, they put a lot of pressure on the ball, they're very physical. For us, we're more of a possession style team. We stretch the game out more and it made it hard for them to win the physical battle."
(On the matchup with Mars Hill) "I think you'll see two good teams play. They're hard working and defend well. It's going to be a wide-open kind of game."
Allan Vital
"This is a good Anderson team, no question about it. I thought both teams played well. It was a question of mistakes we made. A lot of credit to them"
"We had control of the game, I thought, but we made a mistake that allowed them to score the first goal. The first goal is so important. Now we were forced to chase the game and against a good team like this, it's tough to come from behind."
(On making the NCAA Regionals) "We hope we've done enough throughout the season to keep us in, but I don't know what's going to happen. We'll leave that to the selection committee to decide. But I'm awfully proud of the work the guys have done this season. I think we've made a good case, but it's a strong region. Hopefully we get the call."