September 13, 2008

BOX SCORE

FARMVILLE, Va. - The Longwood University men's soccer team (2-2-1) dropped a 3-0 decision to Towson (2-2) on Saturday night at the Athletics Complex. Freshman goalkeeper Joel Helmick/Springfield (W.T. Woodson) played all 90 minutes in goal for the Lancers, coming up with five saves. Longwood returns to action on Tuesday, September 16 taking on UNC Ashville at 4 p.m. in North Carolina.
   
The game did not start off on the right foot for the Lancers as Towson found a way to net the first goal of the game just three minutes into competition. Junior Martin Vickerton/Derbyshire, England (Kirk Hallam Technical College) had the best chance of tying things up for the Lancers, nailing a shot at goal in the eight minute, but was unable to sneak it past the keeper. A few minutes later Tommy Appel-Schumacher found the back of the net again (13:26), for his second goal of the night. Towson would add one more goal before the first period came to an end, taking them into halftime up 3-0.
   
“We didn't show up in the first 15 minutes and Towson pounced on that,” said head coach Jon Atkinson. “We're not good enough to give up three goals in the first half of the game. Not many teams are.”
   
The game proved to be a tale of two halves as the Lancers came out of the locker room fired up, maintaining the majority of the momentum in the second half.  Longwood nearly got on the board in the 71st minute as Harvey Headley/Coventry, England (Stoke Park) took a crack at goal that was knocked down by the Towson keeper and found its way to freshman Kevin Chico/Harrisonburg (Eastern Mennonite). Chico placed his ball perfectly on frame but had it blocked by the Towson defense.  A foul seconds later allowed Chico to take another crack at goal, but again the Towson keeper came up with the save. Vickerton would have a chance at goal picking up the rebound, but would not be able to find the netting. Despite the opportunities the Lancers were unlucky in not getting one past Towson.
  
“We did some restructuring for the second half,” said Atkinson. “We really needed to see some maturity from the boys and who would step up and become the leader.”
   
The two teams ended the game tied in shots with both teams registering 10, while Longwood had a 6-2 advantage in corners. The banged up Lancers' defense did well in catching the Tiger front runners trying to cheat forward, as Towson had 11 offsides to Longwoods 1.
   
“The injuries psychologically affected us a bit, but you've still got to go out there and get the job done mentally. We were called out on that today and there's no excuse.”