Box Score ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Entering the season, one of the goals of Triton men's soccer coach
Cristian Neagu was for his team to go unbeaten at home.
The Tritons are now one win away from achieving that goal after scoring an important 2-1 win over No. 10 Barry University on Wednesday night.
Senior
Nick Jackson netted both of Eckerd's goals, and both came in the second half to give the Warrington, England, native his first career brace.
He delivered first in the 54th minute on a cross from the right wing served by
Juan David Tejada. Left unmarked, Jackson found himself alone against Barry keeper Bo Haug and beat him to the upper left corner.
Jackson and the Tritons (7-0-1, 3-0-1) struck again in the 68th minute as he headed in a perfectly-placed ball off a corner kick from
Richard Ainscough. Moments earlier, Haug stopped a hard strike by
T.J. Soehn, punching it over the crossbar to set up the corner.
Neagu praised the work and the leadership of his senior midfield duo.
"What a way to lead by example tonight by Nick and Rick," he said. "I am very pleased with our performance."
The victory gave Eckerd sole possession of first place in the Sunshine State Conference standings, as both teams entered tonight's contest as the lone unbeaten teams not only in SSC play but also on the season.
It was also Eckerd's first win over a ranked team and a top-10 opponent since upsetting then-No. 4 Lynn University in the 2012 SSC Tournament. That match was a stalemate for 110 minutes before going to penalty kicks, where EC won 5-4.
The first half of tonight's match was very evenly-played, with both teams taking four shots and neither finding the back of the net.
Barry (5-1-2, 1-1-1) finally got on the board in the 76th minute on a header by Frank Lustig as he got behind the back line on a cross from Pablo Georgakopoulos, barely beating EC keeper
Alex Gott underneath the crossbar. The goal brought an end to an impressive streak of 422 consecutive scoreless minutes for Eckerd.
The Bucs continued to press up after the score looking for the equalizer, but the Triton defense was up to the task. EC's back line gained several clearances out of the box and Gott made a spectacular save in the 90th minute on a header following a free kick.
"No mistake about it, I think we are a very good defensive team," Neagu said. "We work hard at it and that's the reason for it."
As the final seconds counted down, the celebration began on the sidelines and in the stands where students came out in droves for White-Out Night presented by the Student Athletic Advisory Council.
The work, however, isn't done for Eckerd which travels to play No. 4 Palm Beach Atlantic on Saturday at 7:00 PM. The Sailfish boast one of the highest-scoring offenses in NCAA Division II.
