GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- With the 2021 regular season past its midway point, the Tusculum University men's soccer team is in need of victories if the Pioneers are to make a late run at a South Atlantic Conference Championship tournament berth.
The Pioneers (1-7-1, 0-5-1 SAC) are on the road Wednesday night against nationally-ranked Limestone, in a match that will start at 7 p.m. instead of 7:30 p.m. as originally scheduled. Tusculum will then return to Pioneer Field to host Lenoir-Rhyne on Sunday at 4:30 p.m. in the final two-match week of the season for the Pioneers.
Last week, the Pioneers lost their only match to Newberry by a 5-4 score, nearly erasing a four-goal deficit in the final 7 1/2 minutes of the second half. The setback was the fifth in a row for the Pioneers, who were playing just their second home match of the season.
RECAPPING THE WEEK
Tusculum fell 5-4 to Newberry Saturday at Pioneer Field. The Pioneers trailed 5-1 following a goal by the Wolves with 7:31 left, but got goals from Lucas Romeiro, Ignacio Alconchel and Pedro Concheso to cut the margin to 5-4 before time expired. The teams combined for six goals in the second half after Newberry carried a 2-1 lead to halftime.
Concheso finished with a goal and two assists for the Pioneers, who also received a goal from Damien Baltide in the first half which tied the match at 1-1. Tusculum outshot Newberry 16-12 in the match and the teams combined for 39 fouls, including 25 during the second half.
The nine combined goals were the most in a match for the Pioneers since a 6-3 win at Catawba on Oct. 19, 2019, and the most in a home match since Tusculum defeated Newberry 7-2 on Sept. 29, 2007. Tusculum had not scored four goals in a defeat since a 5-4 overtime setback to Lander on Sept. 1, 2001.
PROFILING THE PIONEERS
Alconchel's goal was his team-high sixth of the season and his third in six conference matches. His six goals are tied for seventh in the SAC, and he is tied for seventh in the conference with 29 shot attempts.
Baltide netted his first goal of the 2021 season in the first half against Newberry, after leading the team with three goals and three assists during the shortened 2021 spring season. Concheso's goal and two assists were the first points of his career, and Romeiro's goal was his first at Tusculum.
De Freitas has a 2.72 goals against average and is tenth in the SAC in save percentage at .621. De Freitas has allowed three or more goals in five of his last six starts.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
Limestone (8-1-0, 6-0-0 SAC) is the lone undefeated team in conference play following its 2-1 overtime win over Catawba on Saturday. The Saints trailed 1-0 with seven minutes left before tying the game on a goal by Jacob Hancock with 6:45 to go, then won it with 40 seconds left in the first overtime on a goal by Angelo Fabricio.
The Saints, who were ranked 12th in last week's United Soccer Coaches Division II Poll, have won six in a row and have outscored the opposition by a 21-2 margin in their six league wins. Limestone leads the conference in goals with 26, and has scored two or more goals in seven of their nine matches.
Limestone has a balanced attack, led by six goals from sophomore forward Mark Radoki, five goals from Fabricio and four from Hancock. Junior midfielder Antonio Ferreira is tied for the conference lead in assists with six. In goal, sophomore Johann Hipper leads the SAC in goals against average (0.56), save percentage (.808) and shutouts (six).
Tusculum and Limestone met three times while the Saints were members of Conference Carolinas, with the Saints winning in 2010 and 2011 and the Pioneers earning a victory in the last meeting in 2012.
Lenoir-Rhyne (6-3-0, 4-2-0 SAC) enters the week having won five of its last six matches, including a 5-1 rout of Queens on Saturday. After allowing the first goal of the contest in the 8th minute, the Bears scored three times in 15 1/2 minutes to take a 3-1 lead, then added two goals in the second half.
The Bears have scored 19 goals in their last six matches, including 4-1 wins over Anderson and Lincoln Memorial, while conceding just eight goals over that span. Lenoir-Rhyne, which plays at Mars Hill on Wednesday night, earned a 2-1 upset win in double overtime over fourth-ranked Coker on Sept. 29 as Victor Cascon scored the winning goal after 31 seconds of the second extra period.
Senior Noah Tiefel, who scored twice against Queens, leads the Bears with seven goals and four assists for 18 points while Cascon has three goals and four assists. Ten different players have scored a goal for the Bears, who are second in the SAC in shots per game (16.0). Sophomore goalkeeper Camden Coleman has played every minute in goal for the Bears and has a 1.32 goals against average and a .556 save percentage.
The Pioneers have a win and a draw in their last two meetings with the Bears, and have an 18-10-4 lead in the all-time series.
FOLLOW THE PIONEERS
Live stats and video are available for all home Tusculum University men's soccer matches. Links to stats and video for home and away matches are available at tusculumpioneers.com.
