Oct. 3, 2008

Box Score

SPartanburg, S.C. - Jacksonville scored two second half goals, including the game winner with just over five minutes left in the game, to take a 3-2 win over USC Upstate Friday night at County University Soccer Stadium in both team's A-Sun Conference opener.

Jacksonville improved to 4-6-0 overall and 1-0-0 in the A-Sun. Upstate fell to 1-8-0 overall and 0-1-0 in the league. Both teams will be back in action Sunday with Upstate playing host to North Florida, while Jacksonville travels to East Tennessee State.

"I thought we played the best match we have played all year," said Upstate head coach Greg Hooks. "It was the first time all year that we had posed an offensive threat on a consistent basis. I am pleased with the effort, but now we have to learn how to win these close games. We can only take solace in almost winning so many times."

Upstate got on the board first and it didn't take long as the Spartans notched a goal in the second minute of play. Chris McCoy started the play when he stole the ball from a Jacksonville attacking player 25 yards out from the Upstate goal. He took the ball some 20 yards forward before playing a long ball to Hakeem King on the left side of the field. King played the ball back to Colin Francis who found Alex Garcev in the middle of the field.

Garcev crossed the middle and played a ball to Kevin Cawthon three yards inside the box on the right side of the field. Cawthon, a freshman from Easley, S.C., lifted the ball toward the far upper 90 and found the back of the net as Jacksonville goalkeeper Alex Sanchez could not get a hand on the shot. Cawthon's goal was the first of his collegiate career.

Jacksonville evened the game at 1-1 in the 13th minute on an unassisted goal Kristian Lassen. Lassen gathered a loose ball 21 yards out and hammered a low shot towards the Upstate goal. The ball glanced off of an Upstate player, causing just enough of a change of direction for Spartan keeper Patrick Regna not to be able to make a play on the shot.

Upstate pushed back into the lead in the 23rd minute when Erkan Yildirim played a ball from the middle of the field to the right side of the box to Garcev. Garcev took the pass and fired a shot from right to left, placing the shot into the left corner of the goal to give the Spartans a 2-1 lead. The Spartans took the 2-1 lead into the intermission, its second halftime lead of the season.

Jacksonville came out in the second half playing quickly and pressing the Upstate defense. The Dolphins nearly tied the game in the 52nd minute, but Spartan defender Heine Oerhling came up big for Upstate. Dolphin Wesley Lartey took a shot that began to curve just inside the left post. Oerhling, though was at the post to save the goal and cleared the shot.

Jacksonville tied the game at 2-2 in the 69th minute when Nedim Hrustic took control of the ball inside the box on the right side and played two volleys to himself to create space and fired a shot to the right side of the goal. Regna got a hand on the shot, but the ball deflected off of his hand and into the goal to tie the game.

Both teams dodged key scoring opportunities late in regulation to keep the game tied. Hakeem King took his defender one-on-one and beat him down the left side of the box, firing a shot that barely went wide to keep the score tied. Jacksonville quickly responded and a long ball was chased down by Stefan Runeman who beat Regna and took a shot at the open goal. However, the shot went wide to keep the score at 2-2.

Jacksonville broke the tie in the 85th minute after Upstate's Chad McCoy was issued a yellow card and the Dolphins were awarded a free kick from 20 yards out on the right side. Sebastian Lindholm played a cross to the middle of the keeper box five yards out to Nurdin Hrustic who put the header away for the goal.

Upstate nearly tied the game with less than three minutes to play when Yildirim got past a charging keeper and played a shot from six yards out. However, Oliver Klingenstein was there to clear the ball from the open net, equaling Oerhling's play earlier and saving the game for the Dolphins.