JACKSON, Miss. – The Belhaven men's soccer team saw a seven game winning streak come to an end on Thursday night, dropping their conference opener to William Carey by a final of 4-3. The Blazers now turn their attention to 4th ranked Auburn-Montgomery on Saturday in search of their first conference victory.
"We didn't start well, and it took us a considerable amount of time to get our composure," Head Coach
Carl Griffiths said. "We underachieved and played well beneath our abilities tonight. We did a lot to prepare for this game, but it clearly was not enough."
20th ranked William Carey got on the scoreboard first after T.J. Sharp found the back of the net in the eighth minute of play. Teammate Sam Barnsley made it a 2-0 game 29 minutes later on a header that got past Belhaven keeper
Marcelo Mercuri.
The Blazers went to the locker room at half facing a 2-0 deficit, but less than six minutes into the second half, team scoring leader
Cillian Thompson found his fifth goal of the year. The 2-1 contest stood for just 14 minutes, with the Crusaders' Daniel Gundmonsson adding the team's third goal, seemingly a deadly blow against the home team.
The game was just developing into one of interest, however, as
Victor France and
Quinton Jackson each found the back of the net within the next 23 minutes, tying the game at 3-3 with under three minutes remaining in regulation. 22 seconds laters, though, Barnsley struck again for the Crusaders, giving them the 4-3 lead they would need to open conference action with a win.
Carey goalie Josh Carpenter recorded four saves, while Mercuri and
Daniel Prado split time in the goal and combined to save four potential scores. William Carey took a 10-6 edge in corner kicks and a 16-14 advantage in shots, but the difference in the match was Belhaven's three goals erased by offsides penalties.
The Blazers will look to rebound on Saturday against Auburn University-Montgomery, a top five team in the most recent edition of the NAIA Coaches' Poll. The match is set to begin at 7:30 pm from the Belhaven Bowl.
"AUM is a good team, but we know we are a good team, too," Griffith said. "As hard as this loss is, we know what we are capable of."
