ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The Eckerd men's soccer team fell in its home opener to the West Alabama Tigers 2-0 at Johnson Field on Friday night.
The Tigers wasted no time in scoring, converting off a blocked shot in the opening minute for an early 1-0 advantage. UWA added another in the fifth minute as they snuck a ball in on the short side of the left post. Daniel Freire and Samuel Musungaie had a couple of good chances in the middle minutes of the frame, but they were stifled by the Tigers' goalkeeper. The Tritons kept the offensive pressure on, with another two shots in the final ten minutes of the opening stanza, but the Tigers held on to the 2-0 lead heading into halftime.
After nearly 10 minutes of back-and-forth play, the Tritons had a flurry of shots, with August Nygard and Blaine Sutton having a pair of back-to-back chances turned aside by the Tigers' keeper, and Musungaie's pinged the crossbar. The Tritons tested Timon Dressel, with six shots on target in the frame, but Dressel continued to preserve the shutout. Tommy Shepherd had a few good chances late in the game, but was unable to convert, as the Tritons fell 2-0.
HOW IT ENDED
FINAL: West Alabama 2, Eckerd 0
RECORDS: Eckerd 0-1 (0-0-0 SSC); West Alabama 1-0 (0-0-0 GSC)
SCORING SUMMARY: UWA - 1' Nunez, 5' Riley
NOTES AND NUMBERS
- The Tritons outshot the Tigers 19-8, and landed more shots on goal (10-2).
- Shepherd and Musungaie led the team in shots with four apiece.
- Four Tritons registered two shots on goal: Viktor Milton, Shepherd, Freire, and Sutton.
- Thomas Jenkinsson, Freire, and Caden Williams each made their first career start, while Nygard and Marcus Kennedy made their first career appearances.
UP NEXT
The Tritons remain at home to close out Eckerd's opening weekend on Sunday, facing off against the University of Alabama in Huntsville at 1:00 PM at Johnson Field.
