AUSTIN, Texas - St. Edward's men's soccer ended its third consecutive home game at Lewis-Chen Family Field with a second draw, playing the Fort Lewis College Skyhawks to a 3-3 final score.
After the highly contested first half ended scoreless, both teams' eagerness and grit were heavily displayed in the second, matching each other goal for goal.
The opening minutes set the tone, filled with fights over possession in the midfield, surges of energy from both teams, and strong communication on the defensive end, keeping the combined 17 shots from both teams out of the back of the net.
St. Edward's opened with good pressure to keep the ball out of the Skyhawks' possession, keyed by CHRISTIAN MEZAS's early attacking efforts. The Skyhawks' quick response got them their first of nine corner kicks throughout the game. The Hilltoppers countered quickly, with captain ARTHUR SOUZA getting early touches into the box but coming away empty.
IZAIAH GARZA put a shot on goal out of a throw-in, straight into the midsection and hands of Skyhawk keeper Lucas Martin.
Each goal attempt and corner kick resulted in a quick turnaround from the other team, providing their opponent with little space to capitalize. The Hilltoppers were successful and quick when reorganizing positioning on the pitch, with the back four remaining in constant communication and Souza, Mezas, Garza, SHUNJI WATANABE, and FILIP ADAMSKI consistently leading the way up the field.
Watanabe and JACKSON STUBBS – who started his first career game – kept the ball out, but gave the Skyhawks another corner kick, which TIMMY HOLLENBECK cleared with a header. A tough battle for possession resulted in the Skyhawks earning another corner kick, which deflected off the post and fell back into Hilltopper possession.
The physical first half, which counted six fouls for the Skyhawks and two for the Hilltoppers, ended in a scoreless draw.
St. Edward's broke through less than a minute into the second half. Adamski scored in the top left corner of the goal, assisted by BARTEK ZABEK off a corner kick from Devaney.
The Skyhawks answered on a corner kick into the box, met immediately by Watanabe. Despite defensive pressure near the midfield, the Skyhawks found their way back into the box, and after several attempts, Yohann Fila hit the equalizer for the Skyhawks.
Less than 10 minutes later, a Hilltopper counterattack from Adamski to EBUKA BRIGHT-OSIGWE ended with a cross to Watanabe for the header into the top right corner of the net to reclaim the lead with his second goal of the season.
The physicality ramped up with Fort Lewis committing seven more fouls, including consecutive yellow cards to Frank Castro, earning the ejection.
St. Edward's failed to take advantage, misconnecting passes in the midfield with closed gaps on both ends of the pitch, resulting in missed opportunities. At the 77-minute mark, Zabek faced a Skyhawk attacker on the left side, taking the ball out of bounds and surrendering another corner kick to Fort Lewis. Hectic presence in the box got the Hilltoppers scrambling and goalkeeper ANGEL RAMIREZ out of position, allowing the Skyhawks to score after several touches in the box, bringing it to 2-2.
"We were up 2-1 and I think we need to figure out how to finish games, or at least to finish halves, see it out," head coach Brian Young said. "We just need to get better at, when we're up a goal, how we manage that and how we put pressure on them."
The Hilltoppers struggled to reposition and reorganize as the Skyhawks put the ball back into play with more speed and strength, attempting to extend the lead with a quick turnaround.. Reconnecting passes through the left side allowed the Skyhawks to find their way back into the Hilltoppers' box, only two minutes after their previous goal, and find the back of the net once more, bringing it to 3-2.
"I think it was the urgency, but we need to have that when we're up a goal," Young said. "I'm very happy that we came back to tie it, but ultimately we want to win these games."
The Hilltoppers recovered quickly, resulting in attempts by Zabek and Bright-Osigwe and increased communication between midfield and centerbacks, diverting Skyhawk passes, and elevating the stakes as the game got close to the final whistle.
With less than four minutes left, Hilltoppers got a free kick, shot by Souza to Mezas, whose attempt bounced off a Skyhawks' leg. The high deflection resulted in an acrobatic kick by NEMANJA PAVICEVIC, and Adamski hit the equalizer with a header to the right corner of the goal. At the 89-minute mark, the Hilltoppers' momentum gave Mezas one last chance, but he was unable to capitalize.
St. Edward's (1-0-2) closes its three-game homestand on Sunday, Sept. 14, against Metropolitan State University of Denver at noon before returning Oct. 4 for its Lone Star Conference home opener versus Lubbock Christian University.
