MILLERSVILLE, Pa. - The Bloomsburg men's soccer team fell by a score of 3-2 on the road at Millersville Saturday afternoon.
The Huskies (4-4-2, 0-3-1 PSAC East) fought their way back to force a 2-2 draw but succumbed to one mistake, as the Marauders (7-2-1, 3-1) drew and converted from the penalty spot with under 10 minutes to play to come away with the victory on an already dreary day.
Bloomsburg cut the deficit in half in the first half with the first career goal from
Julian Dix (Gambrills, Md./Crofton) with nine minutes remaining in the opening half. The Huskies wasted little time at the start of the second half, applying the pressure that led to the tying effort on a corner kick put away by
Andrew Beagle (Bloomsburg, Pa./Central Columbia).
How It Happened:
Bloomsburg got off to a less-than-ideal start to the afternoon, finding themselves trailing 2-0 at 36 minutes played. The Huskies conceded the first goal of the match after a flicked-on header following a throw-in attempt was left unattended, allowing a Marauder player to streak in unmarked to slot home the finish. Bloomsburg was unfortunate not to escape imminent danger following a corner kick, with a series of touches outside and in the box after recycling the action falling in favor of Millersville for the second.
The Huskies immediately responded after the ensuing kickoff. Bloomsburg benefited from a fortunate bounce off a Marauder defender, which saw a player get deep in the attacking third. A cross in front of the face of goal found
Nick Guzak (Washington Township, N.J./Washington Township), whose attempt at goal was initially denied. On clean-up duty was Dix, settling the rebound with a right-footed finish to make it a one-goal contest.
The Huskies wasted little time finding the equalizer in the second half, as
Connor Fiadino (Burlington, N.J./Burlington Township) fired off a shot on target that eventually led to a critical corner kick.
Zayd DeVeaux (Philadelphia, Pa./Springside Chestnut Hill Academy) took his place over the set piece, delivering a ball that connected with the right foot of a leaping Beagle to tie the match at 2-2.
Bloomsburg was assertive in its search for its first lead of the match, edging Millersville in shots (7-3) and corner kicks (4-1) up until the untimely penalty kick. The Marauders were moving the ball well around the 18-yard box and had found a pocket of space in the Huskies' defensive backline. A late lunge from behind momentarily stopped a shot attempt from Millersville, but set up the opportunity for the game-deciding penalty conversion. Despite their ambitions of tying the match again, the Huskies only managed one shot inside the final 10 minutes of play, unable to find another last-second equalizer.
On the Horizon:
The Huskies are back on the road for another PSAC matchup with a trip to East Stroudsburg on Wednesday, September 30, for a 7:00 p.m. clash.
