ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - With the clock winding down in the final seconds, Tommy Lamb carried a ball to a 1-on-1 with the keeper. Lamb laid a ball off to his left to Fredrik Hiese, who one-timed a goal as the clock expired to fuel the Eckerd men's soccer team to a 3-2 victory over Palm Beach Atlantic at Johnson Field for senior night on Saturday night.
Heise got Eckerd on the board early with a goal in the 14th minute. He received a through pass about 30 yards out, danced around two defenders, and beat the keeper for the 1-0 lead. Luciano Rodriguez added a goal in a similar fashion in the 18th minute for a 2-0 Tritons lead. EC went quiet for the remainder of the half. Yannick Toth got PBA on the board in the 30th minute as EC took a 2-1 lead into the break.
PBA pressed in the second half with four shots inside the first 15 minutes before Tim Vastic equalized in the 67th minute. The teams countered shots over the next 20 minutes, with neither finding the back of the net.
The Sailfish nearly scored on a rebound shot in the 88th minute, but Viktor Milton made a diving kick save. Lamb almost sent in the game-winner 30 seconds later, lofting a shot over the PBA keeper, but the shot hit the top of the crossbar. On a counterattack with 10 seconds left, Lamb made another run, sliding a pass to Heise for the game-winner.
HOW IT ENDED
FINAL: Eckerd 3, Palm Beach Atlantic 2
RECORDS: Eckerd 5-6-4 (3-5-2 SSC); PBA 5-7-2 (2-5-1 SSC)
SCORING SUMMARY: EC - 14' Heise (unassisted), 18' Rodriguez (unassisted), 90' Heise (unassisted), PBA - 30' Toth (unassisted), 67' Vastic (Unassisted)
NOTES AND NUMBERS
- PBA held a 17-14 advantage in shots and a 12-7 favor in shots on goal.
- Athen Slavkin posted a career-high nine saves in goal.
- Slavkin and Lamb played the full 90 minutes.
- Lamb's assist was the first of his career.
- Heise's goals were his third and fourth of the season, while Rodriguez's was his third.
- Eckerd honored its three seniors - Tommy Lamb, Harry Laing, and Micah Nelson - before the match.
