JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. - A 90th minute Carson-Newman goal proved to be the difference as Anderson University men's soccer dropped its regular season finale, 2-1, Saturday evening at McCown Field.
With the setback, the Trojans enter next week's South Atlantic Conference Tournament with an 8-9 record with a 6-5 mark in the league. As the conference schedule wraps up on Sunday, AU finds itself alone in fifth place in the SAC standings as it will be on the road for its first round matchup. Carson-Newman, which advanced to the NCAA Division II Championship a season, ends its regular season with a 7-8-2 overall mark and a 6-3-2 record in the SAC.
The home side won the shot category for the evening, 17-10, highlighted by a 12-shot performance in the final 45 minutes. Pacing the Black and Gold was junior forward Andre Carle with four shots, as six other Trojans fired a shot for the match.
The Eagles opened the match's scoring in the 36th minute when Kristian Speake found James Ward with a corner kick, as Ward's one-timer went past Anderson goalkeeper Bo Haug for the goal. For Ward, the goal was his second of the season.
After Carson-Newman took the one-goal advantage into halftime, Anderson recorded its equalizer in the 53rd minute when sophomore Aaron Roberson went one-on-one with C-N goalkeeper Micah Varner and flicked in a shot into the back of the net. With the goal, Roberson has recorded a point in three of the last four contests with a goal in AU's last four contests. Roberson now ranks third on the squad in goals scored this season.
With overtime on the horizon, the Eagles got their game-winner with just 49 seconds remaining in the match when Lukas Jokich fired a one-timer inside the Anderson box and past Haug for the goal. The goal was Jakich's first goal of the season and it moved C-N to third place in the SAC standings with 20 points.
Despite the setback, Haug posted six saves on the evening, while Varner notched four. Haug closed the regular season with seven victories and was credited with five shutouts.
Anderson will learn its conference tournament fate on Sunday. A site and time will be announced following the league's final match.
