After a disappointing loss to Wofford College, the Elon University men’s soccer team bounced back with a 4-3 win over the struggling Georgia Southern University Eagles Friday night. The win improves the Phoenix to 9-3-2 overall, 3-1 in Southern Conference play.
More importantly, the Phoenix was able to bounce back immediately from last Tuesday’s overtime loss to the Terriers, something Elon head coach Darren Powell knew was vitally important.
“[Winning tonight] was massively important,” Powell said. “Tonight was very important that we came out with three points. It keeps us in the hunt for the Southern Conference championship. It keeps us in the hunt for an NCAA tournament berth. The character of the guys showed to the very end tonight.”
Elon sophomore forward Jason Waterman scored two first half goals, in the 23rd and 26th minutes, to give the Phoenix an early two goal lead. Waterman was finally able to showcase his immense talent tonight after being beset with injuries earlier this year.
Having players like Waterman emerge as a reliable scoring option beside him has senior forward Chris Thomas very excited.
“It’s great to see, it shows the depth of our team and [that] many players on our team can put the ball in the back of the net,” Thomas said. “Waterman is a great forward. I consider him a natural scorer, he was just unfortunate with the injury [but] he’s finally getting back in form, finally getting back in shape now.”
For Waterman, contributing to his team’s ninth win of the season was a relief given his inability to suit up for so much of the beginning part of the season.
“[Scoring two goals] means a lot, I’ve been dealing with some injury problems,” Waterman said. “It feels good to score those two goals and reward my coaches and teammates for their trust in me.”
Georgia Southern would respond with a goal of their own minutes after Waterman scored his second, and would later tie the game at two in the 67thminute. It was a comeback Powell says was generated by a momentary lack of discipline and focus among his back-line players that led to the Eagle’s first goal.
“I thought everybody started the game brightly,” Powell said. “We got off to a good start; two goals up and then [the defense] had the little error in the back that allowed Georgia Southern back in the game. They managed to tie the game up and the game went back-and-forth for awhile.”
That back and forth saw both teams score a third goal, the Phoenix on a Chris Thomas goal in the 88th minute, and the Eagles just a minute later, with less than a minute remaining.
The team’s inability to hold a one goal lead with less than a minute remaining didn’t amount to much in the end, as junior midfielder Daniel Lovitz’s goal in the 106th minute of overtime gave the Phoenix the win.
Despite the win, Thomas knows his team can play significantly better, especially on thed defensive end, where he says they shouldn’t be giving up goals in the waning moments of a match.
“I didn’t think we played to our potential but we stuck with it and ended up getting the win,” Thomas said. “It was a hard-fought battle all the way through overtime and we ended up pulling out the win, luckily.”
For Jason Waterman, a game against a 2-9-1 opponent isn’t the easiest game to get up for, but saw what could happen if a team takes another too lightly.
“It’s true that some games it’s hard to get up the same way you do if you play, like, one of the top teams in the country,” Waterman said. “But it’s really important that we always find a way to motivate ourselves and get prepared no matter the opponent.
The Phoenix look to continue their momentum in a Tuesday night matchup with the College of Charleston, a team Powell is weary of because of the schedule the Cougars have played this year.
“College of Charleston is a very good team, they’ve played a very, very tough schedule this year,” he said. “So for us, it’s another physically demanding game and hopefully our guys are ready to play and can come out and give a good account of themselves.”