GAFFNEY, S.C. (Sept. 2) – In a highly physical non-conference contest, the University of Mount Olive men's soccer team played to a 1-1 draw at Limestone on Saturday.
With the tie, the Trojans move to 0-1-1 overall after starting the 2023 season with a pair of South Atlantic Conference (SAC) opponents. It marked the first meeting between the sides since 2019 and only the second-ever tie in 23 total matches. Meanwhile, the Saints hold a 1-0-1 record and opened the year with a 5-0 win over Young Harris on Thursday.
The Trojans capitalized early in the first half after a misplaced pass by the Limestone defender forced the goalkeeper to make a diving stop to prevent an own goal. Junior
Guilherme Semola collected the loose ball and buried the opening goal of the match in the seventh minute, 1-0. The Saints responded with six shots over the next 10 minutes, including a pair on goal. At the 15:03 mark, Limestone nearly tied the game before junior goalkeeper
Axel Engren made a sliding foot save in front of the net. The UMO defense had another outstanding stop in the 32nd minute after sophomore
Pablo Herrera headed a ball off the goal line to protect the 1-0 advantage.
In the second half, Mount Olive nearly had a 2-0 advantage before an offside ruled off the goal. At the 65:45 mark, Limestone was awarded a penalty kick and tied the contest at 1-1 following a goal by Claudel N'Goubou. Just over a minute later, the Saints went down to 10 men after a straight red card was shown following a takedown at the top of the box. The Trojan offense pressured the net with four shots with three blocked by the defense. In the final minute, junior
Christen Lugo-Elibox hit the left post before Engren made one final save, and the match ended in a draw.
Engren finished with four saves after facing 20 shots over 90 minutes of action.
Limestone held a slight 6-4 edge in shots on goal while also posting a 6-1 advantage in corner kicks.
Mount Olive is idle until next Saturday, Sept. 9, when it opens Conference Carolinas play at Lees-McRae with kickoff set for 2 p.m.