Final Home Match of Regular Season Ends in Draw for Men's Soccer
Belmont’s men’s soccer team fought to a 1-1 draw with the Western Michigan Broncos after an evenly matched game on Friday night, leaving the team undefeated on home turf.
A very physical game saw a total of 31 fouls, including a yellow card on Belmont freshman Leon De Ciccio, with almost all of the fouls leading to free kicks.
The referee caught the ire of the stands as the crowd of roughly 60 people protested many of the calls, with notable booing when there were collisions between players.
“It’s just soccer, it’s a tough physical game, and they aren't always going to get every call, and there's a lot of human error that takes place in this sport,” said head coach David Costa.
On the field, the Bruins had a difficult time as they struggled to get opportunities and failed to execute on the ones that manifested.
At the 11th minute of the game, Broncos junior Kyle Pierson landed a goal despite a valiant effort by Bruins goalkeeper freshman Brody Sucher, giving Western Michigan a 1-0 lead.
Both teams were presented with more opportunities to score, such as in the 17th minute when Belmont fifth-year Nate Mefford took a shot on goal that was saved by Broncos goalkeeper Alex Lindeworth by mere inches.
When the halftime whistle blew, Western Michigan controlled the pace with 13 shots to Belmont’s six.
There were also plenty of fouls to go around in the first half, with the Bruins receiving 11 and the Broncos getting five, much to the disdain of the crowd.
The fouls continued in the second half as two were given to Belmont in the 49th and 54th minutes, respectively. Some fouls led to free kicks, but none were ultimately converted into goals.
A heavy collision occurred between Bruin freshman Judah McCloud and a Broncos player in the 58th minute, and McCloud ultimately had to be helped off the field and was substituted out for Mefford.
The 67th minute of the match saw Belmont finally score as sophomore Paul Claes Nielsen tied the game off an assist from graduate student John McDowell.
As the wind picked up in the second half, both sides settled into an intense rhythm of attacks and counterattacks.
At moments throughout the half, both sides seemed very close to scoring, but a crafty defense would always intervene.
The final 20 minutes saw some of the most intense action, as each of the four corner kicks came close to scoring, along with several runs on goal, but no one could sneak one past the goalkeeper.
In the final seconds of the game, the Broncos took a long shot on goal that was saved by Sucher, marking a draw.
Now 6-5-4, the Bruins will play their final match of the regular season at Evansville on Wednesday while also looking ahead to competing in the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament starting Sunday.
This article was written by Mason Merkle
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