Bartlesville, Okla. – Friends University men's soccer battled Oklahoma Wesleyan University on Wednesday night (Oct. 7), but the Eagles pulled away in the second half for a 5-2 victory.
Oklahoma Wesleyan opened the scoring in the 14th minute when Ronardo Burgher found the back of the net at 13:35.
Friends responded just over a minute later. Jose Quiel scored at 14:47 to quickly level the match at 1-1, assisted by Diego Marin. Quiel then put the Falcons ahead in the 22nd minute, converting a penalty kick at 21:50 to give Friends a 2-1 advantage.
The Eagles answered before halftime, as Mateja Bozic converted a penalty kick at 30:15 to tie the match at 2-2. The Falcons were reduced to 10 players at the same time when Ben Scognamillo was shown a red card. Friends played the remainder of the contest a man down.
Despite the disadvantage, Friends entered halftime tied with the Eagles at 2-2.
Oklahoma Wesleyan took control after the break, with Bozic completing his hat trick with goals at 66:25 and 74:46. Marcos Vidan added another goal at 79:00 to push the Eagles' advantage to 5-2.
Keagan Lewis kept the Falcons within striking distance throughout the match, recording 10 saves on 15 Oklahoma Wesleyan shots on goal. Friends managed four total shots, with three on frame.
The Eagles finished with a 26-4 advantage in total shots and held an 8-2 edge in corner kicks.
Friends (7-3-1) KCAC (5-1) will look to bounce back as they take on Sterling College on Saturday (Oct. 10) at 3:00pm. The game will be on the road in Sterling.
