Trojans suffer defeat at North Greenville

TIGERVILLE, S.C. – After surrendering two goals in the first half Friday, Sept. 30, the UMO men’s soccer team fell by a 2-0 margin at North Greenville in Conference Carolinas play.

With the loss, UMO fell to 7-5 overall with a 4-3 mark in conference action. The Trojans dropped to 2-5 on the road this year, and the Crusaders have won the last three meetings between the sides at Pepsi Stadium. Meanwhile, North Greenville improved to 5-4-2 this season behind a 3-2-2 record in league play.

Mount Olive posted a pair of shots on goal in the opening eight-plus minutes, which forced the Crusader goalie to collect two saves. Redshirt Sebastian Duenas scored on a diving header into the bottom right-corner after a cross into the box to give the Crusaders a 1-0 lead in the 24th minute. North Greenville continued the offensive pressure with six more shots and three corner kicks, as the Trojans were limited to two shots over the final 17-plus minutes of the first half. The Crusaders added to the advantage at the 35:06 mark after a cross in front of the net was directed in by sophomore Seth Hall to put North Greenville ahead 2-0.

UMO shifted possession to the attacking side of the pitch and totaled four attempts, including two on goal in the initial 10 minutes of the second half. In the 55th minute, the Trojans were awarded a penalty kick, but the shot from senior Pedro Franca was stopped on a diving save. In the closing minutes, Mount Olive dropped to 10 men after a red card was shown before the Crusaders secured the shutout win.

Sophomore goalkeeper Axel Engine registered two saves on 11 shots attempted in 90 minutes of action.

UMO held a 13-11 shot advantage, including an 8-5 edge in shots on goal, while also posting a 7-5 lead in corner kicks.