Box Score
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The Eckerd College men's soccer program held strong in the second half despite a two-man disadvantage but couldn't overcome a pair of early goals allowed against No. 4 Lynn University on Wednesday night, falling 2-0.
The Tritons (4-5-1, 2-2-1 SSC) were issued a pair of red cards in the first half that turned out to be an insurmountable difference, including one with 15 seconds left before halftime.
EC pitched a second-half shutout being down 11 men to nine on the field, an impressive feat considering, but couldn't strike paydirt against the NCAA Tournament runner-up from a year ago.
Defender A.B. Magnusson and midfielder Jack Winter each scored for the former No. 1-ranked Fighting Knights (10-1, 5-1 SSC), who bounced back after suffering their first loss of the season against Nova Southeastern University over the weekend.
Eckerd's offense manufactured four shots on the night compared to Lynn's 17, but one of them nearly changed the whole complexion of the outcome.
Senior defender and team captain
Matt Duffy curved a free kick into the box in the 12th minute that caught junior midfielder
Mark Lee breaking to the net in stride.
Lee's header was on the money, but the ball glanced off the crossbar straight into the turf and while Eckerd's bench and coaching staff was ready to erupt in celebration, play continued on because it did not cross the plane.
LU's Magnusson was the beneficiary of a trio of corner kicks into the box within the first 10 minutes in the first half, booting home a low shot at the 10:15 mark.
His first goal of the season was assisted by Jack Winter.
Winter would get his chance just five minutes later, lowering his shoulder and accelerating past a defender to blast a right-footed shot that hit EC goalkeeper
Andrew Hoffer in his padding and rolled to the back of the net.
Lynn goalkeeper Harris Smiler earned the shutout win in his first career start, making one save in the late stages.
Hoffer made eight saves in tonight's effort, stopping four shots in each respective half.
The Tritons will look to rebound from tonight's defeat by preparing for Warner University for a Sunday matchup in the upcoming weekend. Eckerd and the Royals will battle in a non-conference clash at the Turley Athletic Complex beginning at 5 p.m.
Live stats and video/audio will be streamed live on EckerdTritons.com.
