BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. – Florida Gulf Coast University's men's soccer team went toe-to-toe with No. 15 Gardner-Webb for 90 minutes Tuesday night at Greene-Harbison Field, and in the end, the Eagles earned a 1-1 tie with the Runnin' Bulldogs in a hard-fought non-conference match.
FGCU (4-3-2) is now 3-1-2 in its last six matches and the Eagles earned the tie despite being outshot, 23-8, in the match. However, FGCU did have five shots on goal compared to Gardner-Webb's four, so the Eagles' shots proved to be more accurate than those of the Runnin' Bulldogs.
The first half hour of the match was closely contested, with Gardner-Webb (7-1-1) taking more shots, but FGCU putting more shots on goal, making Runnin' Bulldog goalie Alan Horrocks stop three shots before Gardner-Webb managed its first shot on goal. The Runnin' Bulldogs didn't get their first shot on frame until the 33
rd minute, when Robbie Lyons forced Eagle keeper
Oliver Weng to make his first save of the night.
However, once Gardner-Webb put its first shot on goal, it didn't take long for the Runnin' Bulldogs to find the back of the net, as Franco Ocana put Gardner-Webb ahead, 1-0, at 33:41 when he put a shot into the bottom right corner of the net off an assist from Breno Correia.
The score stayed 1-0 until halftime, and Gardner-Webb outshot FGCU, 10-4, in the opening 45 minutes. However, the Eagles and Runnin' Bulldogs each had three shots on goal and five fouls apiece in the first half. Gardner-Webb had two corner kicks to the Eagles' one and FGCU was the recipient of the half's only yellow card.
Both teams had the run of play in the first 20 minutes of the second half, but it was FGCU that scored the next goal. Just after the Runnin' Bulldogs were issued a yellow card,
Victor Lopes buried a shot in the lower left corner of the net for his first goal of the season, tying the match at 1-1 at 66:14.
Neither team was able to score again, and FGCU limited Gardner-Webb to just one shot on goal in the second half. However, the Runnin' Bulldogs lone shot on goal came in the final 30 seconds of the match and Weng had to make the save to preserve the tie for the Eagles.
Along with the 23-8 and 5-4 differences in shots and shots on goal, respectively, FGCU was whistled for 14 fouls to Gardner-Webb's nine and the Runnin' Bulldogs piled up 12 corner kicks to the Eagles' two. Four yellow cards were shown in the match, with three going to FGCU and one to Gardner-Webb.
Lopes,
Jose Bustamante, and
Caio Oliveira had two shots apiece to lead the Eagles' offensive attack. Both of Lopes's shots were on frame, as was one of Bustamante and Oliveira's shots. Weng made three saves to earn the tie for FGCU, making his season record 3-3-1 with a 1.29 goals-against average.
FGCU is back in action on Saturday, hosting Stetson (3-4) in the Eagles' Atlantic Sun Conference opener. Kickoff at Pickering Field is scheduled for 7 p.m. and fans attending the match can receive Ted Lasso themed "Believe" posters as well as take advantage of $2 Biscuits.
For the first time in program history, FGCU is offering fall
season tickets for its soccer programs, with packages starting at $60. Fans who purchase season tickets for either the men's or women's soccer teams will receive a season ticket combo for both programs. For mini-plan options, click
here. For single-game tickets, click
here. Single-game tickets start at just $12.
Fans who aren't able to make it out to Pickering Field to support the Eagles in person can still catch all the action online, as all FGCU home matches are streamed on ESPN+.
