Struggle and Growth Eagles In First Double-Header Weekend

The Emmaus soccer men played their first double-header of the season over the weekend as they hosted the Rams of North Central University (MN) and travelled to Eureka, IL to take on the Red Devils of Eureka College.

Friday night's match saw the Eagles struggle to create many chances against a fast and deep North Central side. Despite two early corners by the Eagles, the Rams struck in the 11th minute when D. Morales (#21) won the endline and beat keeper Rasmussen (#00) to the near post. NCU would then add 3 quick goals in the 20th (Morales), 22 (Brexmus #5), and 27th minutes (Smith #6) as the Eagle young Eagle defense scrambled to adjust.

The 4-0 lead stood at half as the Eagles looked to recover. The defense tightened up, allowing only one more goal in the 76th minute (Boutuli) that was slotted into the corner from 20 yards out. The Eagles did manage to create a few dangerous opportunities on offense, but the experienced Rams defense managed to maintain the shutout.

"I was proud of the way the guys played" said coach Brown after the game. "NCU is a tough and experienced team this year and our guys made some great adjustments down the stretch. This was a good test for the guys and revealed we definitely have some work to do moving forward."

The second match of the weekend saw the Eagles locked in a close battle through the first half. After both teams saw quality chances come up short, including Anthony Flores' (#10) long range effort that bounced of the crossbar, the Red Devils finally managed to crack the Eagle defense in the 26th minute when James Bowen (#10) received a perfect through ball from #11 (Philllips) and found the net on his second touch.

The second half began with the Eagles pushing for the equalizer, putting 4 shots on goal in 10 minutes and really working Eureka's defense. It was the speedster Bowen, however, who got the best of the Eagles in the 55th minute when a quick counterattack found him one on one with Rasmussen to goal who scored for the 2-0 lead. A minute later a fumble at the back saw Bowen again able to find just enough space to complete his hat trick. Bowen wasn't down, however, as in the 57th minute he struck again, this time as the Eagle defense lost its shape and saw him slip through for his 4th goal and 3rd three minutes.

"I will admit I was especially disappointed by the 4th goal as we put out heads down after making some mistakes. I was beginning to think it might be a very long second half." (Coach Brown) The Eagles regrouped, however, led by an encouraging Joe Olson (#3) who continued to press Eureka's back line. Even when Eureka scored a fifth goal in the 66th minute on a great cross from Bowen to Hansen (#10), the Eagles fought on.

Emmaus was awarded in the 82nd minute as their reserves put in some crucial minutes. Brandon Young settled a ball from 22 yards out and placed a shot into the corner. One minute later the Eagles struck again as Anthony Flores saw his second shot of the game hit the woodwork. This time reserve John Hertz (#9) was ready and put away the rebound for his first career goal to bring the Eagles within three. Several chances in the final minutes energized by Mason McCarl (#17) saw the Eagles come close to closing the gap even further, but it was not to be as the game ended in a 5-2 loss.

"Obviously I prefer to never give up 5 goals in a match, but I was pleased to see how the guys finished the match. If we could take away that unfortunate three-minute stretch, this was a very competitive match for both teams. I am excited for a chance to play Eureka again at home next month. Moreover, I felt like our guys really handled themselves well despite the adverse circumstances and were a great testimony of Christ's love for one another." (Coach Brown)

The Eagles next match will be on Saturday, September 10th against a solid group of Emmaus alumni. This will be their final tune up before they begin conference play against the Barclay Bears in Ankeny, Iowa on September 16th.