ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -
Anthony Arico and
Luke Sheekey each compiled a goal and an assist as the Eckerd Tritons (5-3, 3-0 SSC) overcame a 1-0 halftime deficit to defeat the Saint Leo Lions (3-5, 0-2 SSC) by a score of 2-0 on Tuesday evening at the Turley Athletic Complex.
In the first half, Saint Leo's Daniel Asher took a cross to the left side of the 18-yard box by Leonardo Nogueira and deposited it in the back of the net to give the Lions a 1-0 lead in the 37th minute. Eckerd had its opportunities to equalize in the first half but were unlucky. Fortunately they gathered some momentum that carried into the second half.
"In the first half I think we were a little bit flat," Coach Jeremy Wisdo stated. "Saint Leo played well and obviously that was the cause of some of it. In the second half we talked about changing what we were doing defensively slightly from a midfield standpoint; we said that if we won the ball in the midfield, take care of the ball. I think once we started to do those things in the second half then opportunities started to open up for us."
In the second half, Sheekey put the Tritons on the board in the 53rd minute, taking a loose ball that deflected off of a Lion defender after a header by Arico, equalizing the game at 1-1. Sheekey's goal came after four shots, two of which were on frame, in the first half.
"I'm confident, I know that if I keep working hard [goals] will come my way. I have missed a few chances this year, which in the previous years I tended not to do but you have just got to keep working hard and if you do that then the goals end up coming," said Sheekey.
10 minutes later, Arico clinched the game for the Tritons scoring after a through pass into the 18 by Sheekey for a 2-1 lead. For Eckerd, it represented its first win over Saint Leo in the Wisdo/Sheekey era.
"We really just wanted to come out here and do it for the seniors and beat Saint Leo," Arico declared. "They have been our arch rival from the beginning, so to come out here and get a win from them is fantastic."
"It is unbelievable, 3-0 in the conference for the first time, first win against Saint Leo, it means the world to me, it means the world to our coach, it means the world to our players," said Sheekey.
For the game, Eckerd out-shot Saint Leo 14-13 while holding a 5-3 corner kick advantage. Eckerd's
Domenic Spedaliere and Saint Leo's Erik Mozzo each made five saves.
Eckerd will return to action on Saturday, October 3 as it travels to Winter Park, Fla. to battle the 14th-ranked Rollins Tars at 4:30pm.
