BLOOMSBURG, Pa. - The Bloomsburg men's soccer team dropped its season-opening contest against Felician at Steph Pettit Stadium on Thursday afternoon.

In a back-and-forth contest featuring a clash of styles, it was a counter-attacking opportunity for the Golden Falcons that saw the visitors grab and hold on to a 1-0 lead from the eighth minute onward. Felician opens its campaign 1-0 as Bloomsburg sits at 0-1 after game one.

For the Huskies, forwards Sam Blumberger (Colchester, Conn./Bacon Academy) and Owen Hollobaugh (State College, Pa./State College) served as focal points of the late attacking efforts, with several other players having opportunities off numerous deadball situations throughout the contest to nab an elusive tying goal.

How It Happened:
The Golden Falcons got off to a flying start inside the opening 10 minutes of action. Felician used a well-timed and well-weighted through ball to sneak by the Bloomsburg backline with enough pace to net the only goal of the contest.

From there, the contrasting game plans continue to reflect in the flow of the match. The Huskies recorded their first shot on the net for the evening minutes later as Kody Besser (Lacey Township, N.J./Lacey Township) found space at the back post for a headed chance that was punched off the bar by visiting goalkeeper Emanuel Moretti. 

Brady Rimple (Cherryville, Pa./Northampton Area) recovered from the early goal by recording his first save of the season at the tail end of the 18th minute. Bloomsburg would force another save out of Moretti in the 23rd minute with a header from Patrick Walsh (Macungie, Pa./Emmaus) that did not have enough behind it to sneak into the top right corner.

The final chance in the first half for the Huskies came from the top of the box with a big crack from Alex Wilsterman (Orefield, Pa./Parkland) that was blocked and redirected away from the net.

The opening 25 minutes of the second half saw the two sides trade possession without being able to create substantial threats against either goalkeeper. The offensive tempo ramped up from the 71st minute onwards, with Blumberger knocking two headers just off goal and Zach Morales (Orefield, Pa./Parkland) squaring a ball that trickled into Felician's hands.

A series of shots in the 83rd and 84th minute tested the fortitude of the Golden Falcons' defense but were either blocked or scraped the top of the bar once more. Hollobaugh put pressure on Felician again with a rifled shot veering to the bottom left corner before being punched out. Anthony Schlee's (Baltimore, Md./Archbishop Curley) final tap-in attempt off a nodded set piece was stopped at the line in what proved to be Bloomsburg's final attacking effort.

Rimple again held strong in the closing moments, parrying a last-ditch counter from the Golden Falcons as the subsequent shot was deflected away by the Huskies' defense before the final whistle.

Numbers of Note
Bloomsburg was the more aggressive side in the second half, outnumbering Felician in shots, 10-5, and overall in corner kicks, 6-4, while generating multiple goal-scoring threats from set pieces. 

On the Horizon: 
The Huskies are back in action on Sunday, September 8, at 3:00 p.m. with a road non-conference clash against Lock Haven.