Eagles Fall in Second-Half Battle with N.C. State
10/6/2010 2:28:00 AM | Men's Soccer
RALEIGH, N.C. - The Georgia Southern Men's Soccer team took a 2-0 lead at N.C. State Tuesday night, but the Wolfpack battled back with three goals for a 3-2 win at Dail Soccer Stadium.
Freshman defender Drew Ruggles (Manassas, Va.) scored the Eagles' first goal after the Wolfpack defended Ethan LaPan's (Martinez, Ga.) corner kick, but Ruggles converted the loose ball to the top left corner. Ruggles' first career goal gave Georgia Southern a 1-0 lead at the 24-minute mark.
N.C. State would take three shots in the remainder of the first half, with two going wide and one blocked by Eagle defenders. Georgia Southern took the 1-0 lead into halftime.
Shortly after the start of the second half, LaPan re-entered the match. In the 47th minute, he took the assist from Hunter Norton (Evans, Ga.) and beat the N.C. State goalkeeper with his shot hitting the far post before going into the net. LaPan's third goal of the 2010 season gave the Eagles a 2-0 advantage.
In the second half, Georgia Southern held N.C. State without a goal for 20 minutes and limited the Wolfpack to one shot. The Eagles fended off a corner kick in the 66th minute, but within the next minute, N.C. State's David Brown scored a goal to bring the score to 2-1, Georgia Southern. The Wolfpack, with a contingent of players around the box took multiple looks and had three shots over the next 13 minutes. Craig Suntherland had a shot that went wide before he came back in the 80th minute with another N.C. State goal to tie the match 2-2.
"When we went up 2-0 with 20 minutes left, we need to take control and not let a win get away - that's a mental toughness we have to continue to develop," said Eagle Head Soccer Kevin Kennedy. "We felt like the guys played with a lot of energy, a lot of emotion and technically, we were prepared and very good. We gave up two goals that were set pieces and we are going to have to battle a little more in the box."
In the 83rd minute, Sutherland and Tyler Lassiter fed Chris Zuemer for what would be a game-winning goal. Georgia Southern's final shot was blocked and the Wolfpack captured the win.
Eagles' goalkeeper Neal Bates (Watkinsville, Ga.), making his third start, had two saves in the loss. Carlos Villa picked up with win for the Wolfpack (1-0).
Georgia Southern's record stands at 3-5-1 while N.C. State evened its record to 5-5. The Eagles return home to face SoCon opponent UNC Greensboro Sunday, October 10th, in a 2 p.m. match at Eagle Field.
For more information on Eagle men's soccer, visit GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com/msoccer or follow the team at facebook.com/GSAthletics or twitter.com/GSScores.
