THOMASVILLE, Ga. – The 11th-ranked Thomas University men's soccer team fell just short, 3-2, tonight in their NAIA Game of the Week matchup with No. 6 Mobile.
 
While both squads made several offensive pushes in the early minutes of play, the first shot did not land on goal until the eighth minute of the game.
 
In the 18th minute, Mobile took a temporary 1-0 lead when Pierre Mangold launched a shot from 25 yards out into the upper right hand corner of the goal, but the Night Hawks would equalize just seconds later when Eric Persson knotted the game with a left-footed strike to the bottom left corner.
 
The Rams took a 2-1 lead into the intermission when Mitch Golding placed a header off the far post in the 28th minute.
 
The eventual game-winner came in the 57th minute when Newton Henry's shot navigated its way between two Night Hawk defenders and past the outstretched hands of keeper Ben McFarlane-Barnes.
 
Down, but not out, the Night Hawks mustered a final attack towards the net in the 84th minute that saw Persson connect with midfielder Lyle Gifford for a one-timer into the net.
 
"An inconsistent effort today cost us," stated head coach Ricky Zambrano.  "We need to rebound and learn from today as we look to get things on the right path in our last tune-up before the start of conference play."
 
With the 3-2 loss, the 11th-ranked Night Hawks drop to 5-1 on the year while No. 6 Mobile improves to 6-2.
 
Scoring Summary
17:05 – Mobile – Pierre Mangold (unassisted)
18:10 – Thomas – Eric Persson (assist by Antoine Akoure)
27:41 – Mobile – Mitch Golding (assist by Newton Henry)
57:05 – Mobile – Newton Henry (unassisted)
83:34 – Thomas – Lyle Gifford (assist by Eric Persson)
 
By The Numbers
3 – Lyle Gifford, Eric Persson, and Juan Figueroa all managed three shots for Thomas
4 – The Rams placed just four shots on frame, converting on three of those
6 – Elijah Gibson made six saves for Mobile, his most since his six against John Brown on Aug. 22
15 – Thomas out-shot Mobile 15-9 overall and held an 8-4 edge in shots on goal

The Night Hawks are back in action on Sun., September 20, as they host the 23rd-ranked Auburn Montgomery Warhawks (5-1-1) at the TU Soccer Complex on Youth Soccer Day.  First touch is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.
 
For up-to-date information on this game and other TU Athletics, visit http://www.TUNightHawks.com. Stay up-to-date with news, scores, photos, game summaries, play-by-play, and feature stories of your TU men's soccer team by following them via Twitter at @NightHawksMSocc.