GAFFNEY, S.C. - After scoring the match's opening goal in the 29th minute, Anderson University men's soccer was unable to hang on to its lead and was eliminated from the 2013 NCAA Division II Championships by Carson-Newman, 3-2, Thursday afternoon at Saints Field on the campus of Limestone College.
With the loss, the Trojans close their season at 12-7-3 and its fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament in the last five seasons.
Redshirt sophomore Andre Carle got Anderson on the scoreboard first when he lofted a shot over C-N goalkeeper Nick Martin, who was playing in place of suspended goalkeeper Rumwald Le Guevel. The play was made when freshman forward Aaron Roberson flicked a pass to a streaking Carle who notched his 12th goal of the season.
The AU goal was short-lived as just eight seconds later, the Eagles drew the score even when substitute Nick Skoda fired a short-range shot past Anderson goalkeeper Bo Haug to even the score at 1-1. For Skoda, the goal was just his second of the season.
After the match went into halftime even at 1-1, it was Carson-Newman who went on the attack to begin the second half. A little less than five minutes into the half, the SAC Player of the Year, Ross Frame found his way on the scoresheet when he sent a shot into the top corner to give the Eagles their first lead of the match. Sindre Welo, who tallied the assist on the overtime game-winner when AU and C-N met in the regular season, recorded the assist for the Frame goal.
Ten minutes later, Carson-Newman forward Nico Noll gave the Eagles a much-needed insurance goal to put C-N ahead 3-1. Noll received a pass from Matheus Bachi and slid a shot into the bottom right corner increase the Eagle lead.
Looking to begin a late comeback, junior Martin Brain got the Trojans back into the match when AU was awarded a free kick a yard outside of the C-N box in the 85th minute. With graduate student Bernd Muxel standing over the ball, his back heel to Brain triggered a shot from 20 yards out that got by Martin for the goal. For Brain, the goal was his fourth of the season and third in the last four matches. Muxel would add his third assists of the year.
Despite the late goal, the C-N was able to keep Anderson from recording an equalizer, as the Trojans were unable to record a shot in the final five minutes. The Eagles would clinch the victory and move to 12-6 overall and winners of eight of their last nine contests.
"There is never a nice way to end a season," head coach John Murphy said. "When you put a lot of time and effort into something and do not get the result you are looking for, it's tough. We will take this as a teaching tool for our players and coaching staff. We fought all the way through the match, the score reflects that and I couldn't be prouder of our team's performance. We have to thank the players, fans and the athletic department for a great season and I'm really excited for the future of this program."
Carle led the way for the Trojans with five shots, while Roberson, who came on as a substitute, closed the match with two. Defensively, Haug would record six saves on the afternoon.
For the Eagles, Kristian Speake fired four shots with three troubling Haug. Frame increased his goals and assists tallies by one, giving him 17 goals and 11 assists on the season as he leads the South Atlantic Conference in both categories.
Carson-Newman advances to the next round of the NCAA Championships, as it will face top-seeded Limestone on Saturday.
