CLEVELAND, Miss. — The Delta State University men's soccer team battled Christian Brothers University to a 1-1 draw Wednesday night at Signaigo Field, as the Statesmen overcame an early deficit and held the Buccaneers scoreless over the final 74 minutes.
Christian Brothers (3-5-4, 1-2-4 Gulf South Conference) struck first in the 16th minute when Lauri Orava scored his sixth goal of the season off an assist from AJ Bowman.
Delta State (2-8-2, 0-5-1 GSC) answered in the 28th minute when
Ivan Gomez found the back of the net for his second goal of the season.
Callum Black provided the assist, pulling the Statesmen level at 1-1.
The Statesmen controlled much of the first-half action, recording five shots, all of which were on target, while earning five corner kicks. Christian Brothers goalkeeper Noah Djebali made four saves to keep the match tied entering halftime.
Neither team could break through in the second half. Delta State goalkeeper
Daniel Santema came up with three saves, including a stop on a shot by Christian Brothers' Olivier van der Tuin in the 70th minute, to help preserve the draw.
Delta State finished with five shots, all on target, while Christian Brothers held an 8-5 advantage in total shots. The Statesmen earned seven corner kicks compared with four for the Buccaneers.
Santema played all 90 minutes in goal for Delta State and finished with three saves. Djebali recorded four saves for Christian Brothers.
The Statesmen were forced to play the final five minutes with 10 players after
Callum Black received a red card for unsporting behavior in the 86th minute.
The Statesmen are back in action this Saturday afternoon as they host the Warhawks from Auburn University at Montgomery at approximately 3:30 p.m.
