THOMASVILLE, GA — The Thomas University Men's Soccer program opened up SUN Conference play Saturday afternoon, as the Night Hawks tied the Bobcats from St. Thomas University in double overtime 3-3.
Thomas opened up the contest scoring in the 3rd minute after STU goalkeeper Franco Acerbi committed a foul just outside the box giving Thomas University the free kick. TU Defender Giacomo Bacigalupo served the free kick back post finding Freshman midfielder Cameron Hawkins who registered his first goal as a member of the Green and White.
The Night Hawks scored their second goal of the contest in the 25th minute as Freshman forward Regan McLaren scored on the break thanks to a perfectly weighted through ball from midfielder James Hall.
The Thomas defense collapsed a few moments later, after a foul in the box gave the Bobcats a penalty kick. STU midfielder Fernando Arzeno buried the penalty to narrow the gap to one with less than twenty to play in the half.
Ten minutes later, in the 36th minute, St. Thomas scored on the attack playing a quick corner that forced a weak clearance landing on the foot of Bobcat Captain Juan Manuel Collazo. Collazo's touch set the center back up for the golden opportunity, which he took, rifling the shot into the top right of the net.
At the start of the second half, Thomas fielded fresh legs on the pitch, which proved to be worthwhile, as, in the 47th minute, midfield substitute Samuel Greaves served McLaren a through ball behind the Bobcat defense leading the Scot to score his second goal of the contest.
After allowing one goal and surviving the early surge of TU offense in the second half, St. Thomas began to mount pressure on their attack forcing the Night Hawk back line to defend tirelessly for the next 20 minutes. Eventually, in the 78th minute, the TU defense cracked allowing the Bobcats to score and tie the contest 3-3 with less than 12 minutes to play in regulation time.
Thomas University goalkeeper Stephen Douglas had an impressive showing in his second consecutive start tallying nine saves.
The Englishman's biggest save of the contest came in the 89th minute when another poor clearance required the Freshman to make a diving save across the net to force overtime as time expired.
In overtime, offensive pressure was easily handled by both teams, as the back line of TU limited the St. Thomas attack to two shots through both periods. As the minutes continued to rack up, neither team were able to capture the elusive golden goal and, after 110 minutes were played, the SUN Conference opener ended in a 3-3 draw.
In the end, seven cautions were issued, ten saves were made, 28 shots were tallied, and six goals were scored in the double overtime juggernaut match.
Up next, the Night Hawks host their second to last non-conference opponent this Wednesday at the TU Soccer Complex. Kickoff is set for 1 PM.
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.
