Principia Edges Eureka Late in SLIAC Nail-Biter, 3-2
EUREKA – The Eureka men's soccer team were right there against Principia the whole match, ready to seize its first win of the season. It just didn't come together.
The Panthers went ahead late and dodged a bullet by a couple inches when Diego Cintora's (Watseka, Ill./Watseka) penalty kick hit the left post in the last five minutes, and the visitors held on for a 3-2 win over the Red Devils at McKinzie Field on Tuesday.
Eureka's Jake Edmondson (Monticello, Ill./Monticello) delivered a strong performance in the middle for the Red Devils and recorded his first two career collegiate goals.
Principia's Dillon Hussey put the Panthers on the board after a free kick and an EC misclearance in the sixth minute.
Edmondson answered less than minutes later when he stole the ball from a defender after a Principia throw-in and fired a left-footed blast from 25 yards out. He kept it low and placed it in the opposite left corner for a class finisher and an equalizer.
Then, in the 15th minute, Kamiel Sauer (Haarlem, Netherlands/Coornhert Lyceum) took a free kick from about 44 yards out and knocked it off the crossbar. Edmondson was there for the crash and headed into the left side of the net to give the Red Devils a 2-1 lead.
It stayed that away for the next 40 minutes of play.
In the 55th minute, however, Eureka goalkeeper Byrn Callahan (Moline, Ill./Moline) came out to get a ball kicked near the top of the 18. After struggling to retrieve it, the ball bounced to a Principia attacker feet and Callahan went in for the slide. He made contact late and the referee called the first penalty kick of the day.
E.G. Pierce calmly drilled it to the left side to tie the game at 2-2.
By the time the match reached the last 10 minutes, it appeared overtime was looming. That changed in the final five minutes, when Principia scored on a counterattack.
Liam Peschke connected with Delwys Glokdur and the latter finished it with a nudge to the right corner, just out of Callahan's grasp.
After the goal, the Red Devils came back strong the other way, with Nathan Macario (Safford, Ariz./Safford) getting knocked down in the box with 4:15 to play. The referee called another penalty kick, giving EC a chance to equalize again.
Cinotra aimed for the lower left corner and the ball hit the inside corner of the post and rolled out of the area before Eureka could get to it.
And so, the Red Devils fell just short in a St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference match it controlled for a large part of the afternoon. The team outshot the Panthers 18-12 and both teams notched five shots on goal.
Eureka's back line of Teddy Wesoloski (McDonough,Ga./Ola), Ignacio Gutierrez (Madrid, Spain/El Prado) and Austin Marburger (Litchfield, Ill./Litchfield) made very few mistakes in the back and Callahan came out with two big saves.
Eureka will next host Webster on Saturday at 1 p.m.
