DELAND, Fla. - Host Stetson scored twice in a four-minute first-half stretch to hold off Georgia Southern men's soccer, 2-1, in a non-conference contest on Wednesday evening at the Stetson Athletic Training Center in DeLand, Fla.

The Hatters (4-3) claimed their first win at home with the victory, while Georgia Southern (3-2) will finally play its first home match of the 2019 season, hosting Campbell on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. at Eagle Field.

The story of the first half was the play of Eagle goalkeeper Jose Eduardo Bomfim, who came up with five saves as Georgia Southern looked to take a scoreless contest into halftime. But the Hatters came up with the first goal in the 34th minute as a throw-in into the box found William Suaut, whose turn-around shot beat Bomfim and put Stetson up by a goal.

Just three minutes and 25 seconds later, Stetson doubled their advantage off of a corner kick, as Calum Ferguson scored to give the Hatters a two-goal advantage in the 38th minute. Stetson had an 11-5 edge in shots in the first half.

In the second half, the Eagles had a golden chance to draw one back in the 66th minute. A corner kick from Georgia Southern bounced through the box towards the far post, where PJ Amponsah's point-blank shot was initially saved by Stetson goalkeeper Lute Lillo-Portero. The ball ricocheted back out to Gonzalo Talavera, whose follow shot sailed high.

Georgia Southern would push and finally get their first goal in the 87th minute as Cody Prentiss' shot from just inside the top of the box, following a free kick, would beat Lillo-Portero inside the far post for his first collegiate goal. Corey Irvine picked up his first assist as an Eagle on the play.

The Eagles had a last-ditch corner kick opportunity in the final minute, but Stetson would clear and claim the victory, drawing the overall series between the two teams even at 13-13-3. Georgia Southern had come into the match with two straight wins in the series.

"You can't play half a game at any decent level, and that's what we did tonight," Georgia Southern Head Men's Soccer Coach John Murphy said. "I think the response from the kids in th second half was good, and we got rewarded with the goal. I'm not going to sit and complain about breaks not going your way, because you have to make your own breaks. But when you turn it into a 45-minute game, you're taking a huge risk, and that's what we did tonight. We don't have long to feel sorry for ourselves, we have to dust ourselves off and get ready for a very good Campbell team on Saturday in our home opener."

Stetson finished the match with a 19-11 edge in shots. Bomfim finished his second start as an Eagle with seven saves, while Lillo-Portero had one. Stetson had a 7-3 edge in corner kicks, and Georgia Southern was whistled for 22 fouls, compared to 15 for the Hatters. Stetson was offsides twice on the night and Georgia Southern was offsides once.