BRISTOL, Pa. – The Cairn University men's soccer team lost by a score of 3-2 at home against undefeated Eastern University on Wednesday evening.
Eastern (5-0) proved the worth of its undefeated record early in this contest, scoring in the 16
th minute to take a 1-0 lead. The Eagles pocketed another goal in the 40
th minute and took a 2-0 lead over Cairn (2-2-1) into intermission. The Highlanders came out with authority in the second frame, as in freshman
Jesse Brittain (Chester, PA / The Christian Academy) darted past the Eagle's back line and found graduate student
Brandon Hasko (Elkton, MD / Elkton HS) for an excellent look in the slot, but it was turned away by Easter keeper Diesel Fiore in the 57
th minute. Cairn used that momentum to notch its first goal of the contest in the 61
st minute, as senior
Josh Goodyear (Camp Hill, PA / Camp Hill HS) used a header to find cotton off a gorgeous cross by freshman
Moses Beers (Lancaster, PA / Manheim Township) to cut the Eastern lead to 2-1. Beers went to work again in the 72
nd minute, as he rocketed a free kick past the outstretched arms of Fiore to knot the contest up at two a-piece. Both teams traded chances down the stretch, until Eastern got a good run past the Highlander back line with just a minute to go in regulation. Cairn freshman goalkeeper
Chris Eelman (North Haledon, NJ / Hawthorne Christian) came out to contest, but was called for a foul, granting Eastern a penalty kick with the game on the line. Eastern midfielder Emmanuel Hewitt made the most of the opportunity, converting the PK and giving the Eagles the victory.
Eastern held the advantage in shots (15-9) and shots on goal (8-5). The Highlanders edged out the Eagles in corner kick opportunities (4-1). Beers led the Cairn offense with a goal, an assist and three total points. Eelman corralled a career-high five saves in a complete-game effort in his first collegiate start.
The Highlanders will be back on the pitch on Saturday, September 18 they welcome the Aggies of Delaware Valley University to town for a non-conference contest. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.
