CLINTON, Miss. – The Eckerd men's soccer team battled Mississippi Christian to a scoreless opening half before the Choctaws pulled away in the second for a 3-0 victory on Friday night.

The Tritons held Mississippi Christian off the board through the first 45 minutes behind a pair of saves from Trent Murphy and a strong defensive effort. MC held a 3-0 advantage in shots after one half of play.

Eckerd began to create more chances after the break, but Mississippi Christian broke the deadlock in the 58th minute with a score. The Tritons looked for an answer, with Sebastian Schmalbach and Marcio Costa each putting shots on frame, but the Choctaws doubled their lead less than nine minutes later.

Mississippi Christian added an insurance goal in the 83rd minute to close out the scoring.

Eckerd finished with six shots, all coming in the second half, while Schmalbach and Costa accounted for the Tritons' two attempts on goal. Murphy played all 90 minutes between the posts and recorded six saves.

With the loss, Eckerd moves to 1-2-0 on the season. The team will be back in action Sunday at Delta State.