Men's Soccer 10/7/2012 12:00:00 AM

Men’s Soccer Allows Late Equalizer; Draws with St. Edward’s

Box Score LAREDO, Texas – What seemed like a surefire win for the TAMIU men’s soccer team ended in a draw as the Dustdevils played host to conference rival St. Edward’s Saturday afternoon at Dustdevil Field.

Leading 1-0 with just minutes left in regulation, TAMIU was whistled for a penalty just outside their defensive zone in the 89^th minute of play. Hilltoppers’ midfielder Andrew Fox broke the Dustdevils hearts, sneaking a well-placed shot past the outstretched hands of TAMIU keeper Jesus Cisneros from 20 yards out to equalize. The match went into overtime where neither team was able to mount an effective attack, ending in a 1-1 draw.

The result snaps the Dustdevils’ three-game winning streak versus St. Edward’s dating back to October 31, 2010. TAMIU’s conference record slips to 2-1-2, while St Edward’s fell to 3-1-1. With UT-Permian Basin dropping a 2-1 decision in overtime to Newman Saturday afternoon, the Dustdevils are now just a half game behind the Falcons for second place in the conference standings with five conference games remaining.

Still without last year’s leading goal scorer Diego Manzano-Cano (out with a muscle strain) and losing red hot midfielder Adrian Elicerio in the opening half to a pulled hamstring, the TAMIU offense was able to produce few potent attacks. St. Edward’s finished with a 13-5 advantage in shots, including a 5-1 advantage in shots on goal.

After over 40 scoreless minutes to start the game, TAMIU was finally able to find an opening in the Hilltoppers’ defense off a counter attack in the 44^th minute. Senior midfielder Elkin Marin-Tobar pushed the ball up the middle of the field finding sophomore midfielder Juan Narvaez on the right flank. Narvaez then played a through ball back to Tobar who was able to dribble around the keeper and finish on an empty net.

Men’s Soccer will return to the pitch on Thursday, October 11, for a crucial matchup versus UT-Permian Basin. The Dustdevils will be looking for revenge after dropping a 2-0 decision to the Falcons earlier this season. Kickoff for Thursday’s game is set for 7:30 p.m. at Dustdevil Field.

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