EUGENE, Ore. – A two-goal lead couldn't last, but the Bushnell men's soccer team was able to salvage a tie on Friday night, playing to a 2-2 draw with No. 15 Southern Oregon University in a critical Cascade Collegiate Conference game.
The Beacons (9-1-5, 5-1-3 CCC) picks up one crucial point in the CCC standings and now have 18 on the season, good for third-place. Bushnell keeps a two-point lead on SOU and the College of Idaho, and can clinch a CCC playoff berth as early as Saturday.
Head Coach
Joao Ehlers said, "we played a good game tonight. The boys did very well tactically. SOU is a strong opponent that challenged us, but I'm overall pleased with the performance tonight."
The Beacons were the first on the scoreboard with one of the more remarkable goals of the season coming in the 43rd minute. A free kick from
Tomas Jujihara found the diving head of
Joao Maia (pictured) in the box as Maia's connection found the back of the net.
Bushnell made it a 2-0 lead in the 58th minute, once again scoring on a set piece as
Emmanuel Rea headed in a corner kick by
Severin Larsen.
The elation would not last, however, as Southern Oregon fought right back into the contest, scoring two goals less than 90 seconds apart to tie the game. In the 61st minute, Mustafa Daggig dribbled the ball along the end line, straddling the line before a pass back into the box found Jonathan Gaspar for a quick strike.
Just moments later, Southern scored off a corner kick with Elias Ahmed finding the head of Agustin Gannat for the equalizer.
Southern Oregon (9-3-2, 5-3-1) ended the contest with a 19-8 advantage in shots as they allowed Bushnell just one additional shot-on-goal outside of the two that found paydirt.
UP NEXT: The Beacons, who record their school-record fifth tie of the season, will be back in action on Saturday, taking on Oregon Tech (4-4-7, 2-4-3) in their final home game of the season. The Owls are currently tied for ninth-place in the CCC with eight teams qualifying for the post season.
