The Bruins suffered another tough road loss on Thursday night as the team fell to North Greenville University 1-0 in Tigerville, South Carolina. Throughout the match, the Bruins were able to create scoring chances and maintain consistent possession, but the Crusaders notched a goal in the second half and the Bruins couldn't find the equalizer as the team falls to 5-11 on the season.
"We created good chances tonight and it was unfortunate that we couldn't capitalize," Bruins Head Coach Matt Hotchkin said. "We're thankful for all our fans who came out and braved the weather to cheer us on in this one."
The Bruins came into the game on the heels of a tough home loss earlier in the week to St. Andrews University 3-1. They looked to get back into the winning column as they faced crosstown opponent North Greenville, who came into the game at 2-13 having dropped four straight games. Heavy rains were in the forecast, but the turf field at NGU presented playable conditions as the two teams took the pitch.
From the opening kickoff, the Bruins were able to maintain possession and created scoring chances early on. Conley Burk and Gasheed Lareche tested the Crusader keeper but their shots sailed wide. The Crusaders answered back with chances of their own but Bruins keeper Isaac Landry was up to the task.
As the half wore on, the Bruins continued to pressure the net as Jordan Crews, Victor Oladipo, and Jesse Rush each had quality chances but the team couldn't find the back of the net as the buzzer rang for halftime with the score still tied 0-0.
In the second half, the Crusaders came out with more urgency than in the first half and began to find open lanes for shots on frame. In the 64th minute, Gareth Greene created space and fired a shot on frame but Isaac Landry came up with a brilliant save to keep NGU off the board.
Unfortunately, just minutes later the Crusaders finally found the scoring column as Kike Molina fired a shot which went right through the hands of Landry and found its way into the back of the net to make it 1-0.
The Bruins came right back looking to find the equalizer. David Dume and Jesse Rush each had a chance to draw the Bruins even, but both shots sailed high. As the final buzzer sounded, the Bruins again found themselves on the losing end of a tough match as the team fell to North Greenville 1-0.
"I thought our effort was solid tonight," Coach Hotchkin said. "The guys are hungry for a consistent effort going into the region tournament. We look forward to representing BJU and will give it our best."
The Bruins had outshot the Crusaders 12-9 in the first half, but the team struggled to maintain their offensive rhythm in the second half as they were outshot 9-2. Landry made seven saves on the night for the Bruins as the team wraps up the regular season of play.
Next up, the Bruins will await the final seeding for the NCCAA DII South Regional Tournament. The region playoffs will be played at Toccoa Falls College November 7-9. The Bruins will learn their region seeding early next week with the region playoff schedule to be released after final seeding is determined.
