Men's Soccer Can't Hang On Late

The Faith Men's soccer team had to turn right around and play a very solid team in Manhattan Christian College (Manhattan, KS) the day following their win at Barclay. This matchup has turned into a highly contested rivalry with nearly every game coming down to the last few minutes, and Saturday's game was no exception.

Both teams started out strong, with both sides mounting dangerous attacks. Manhattan drew first blood 18 minutes into the game when Jack Hinderliter scored off an assist from Shane Herl. The rest of the half saw the teams exchange shots, with neither team able to capitalize and the half ending 1-0 in favor of the Thunder.

Manhattan had the Eagles sweating early in the second half with a series of corner kicks but could not connect on any of them. Then 10 minutes into the half, the Eagles managed to have one of their dangerous attacks payoff when Joseph Frerichs scored the equalizer off a nice layoff pass from Oleg Orlov right at the top of the 18 yard box. Faith did a good job of maintaining their energy with subs and seemed to have Manhattan's defense on their heels. The Eagles controlled much of the second half and had Manhattan scrambling on defense, taking a 15-8 advantage in shots on goal for the game. However, with 8 minutes left in the game Faith had a small miscue on defense, and Manhattan took full advantage of it, scoring what would become the game winner. Despite the Eagles playing some of their best soccer of the season, they came up just short.

 

"It was a great game tonight in a fun atmosphere under the lights!" Coach Jordan Sauser remarked following the game. "We always know it's going to be a tough 90 minute grind against Manhattan, and this was no exception. Really proud of the way our guys battled and fought. I think this weekend was good for us as a team. We took some good strides forward and are looking to peak at the right time with tournaments right around the corner."  

The loss moves the Eagles record to 6-3-1 with just 4 regular season games left. They are back on their home field this Friday, facing what could be one of their toughest opponents yet in #1 nationally ranked Kansas Christian College (Overland Park, KS).