SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. – For the second-straight game, the MACU Men's Soccer team managed outshoot its opponent, but the Evangels struggled to find a finishing product as the Evangels suffered a very tough 2-0 defeat against John Brown at Alumni Field on Saturday night.
 
SCORE

• John Brown 2, Mid-America Christian 0
  • Mid-America Christian (6-7-4, 4-2-2 SAC)
  • John Brown (10-3-3, 5-1-2 SAC)

SCORING SUMMARY

• 2^nd Half – JBU – 46:28 – Goal: Kendal Madrigal (2), Assist: Constantin Bauer – JBU 1, MACU 0
• 2^nd Half – JBU – 48:49 – Goal: Amaury Jarry (5), Assist: Kendal Madrigal, Gabriel Garcia – JBU 2, MACU 0

MATCH SUMMARY

• First Half
  • Through the wet rainy condition, both teams struggled to break through the other side's defense as John Brown and Mid-America Christian combined for only three total shots the entire first half.
  • The Golden Eagles had the best chance of either side for the opening goal in the fourth minute when Marcos Miranda got the ball on the right side after a corner kick, lofting a strong floating shot toward the top left that MACU goalkeeper Dante Caffaro made a stellar stabbing save to force out the back for another JBU corner kick.
  • MACU's only shot of the first 45 came off the foot of Ryan Jeanfreau in the 32^nd minute after he forced a turnover in JBU's defensive third that Jimmy Cabrera relayed back to him inside the box on the run, but a Golden Eagles defender slid in at the last possible second to block his shot on a sliding tackle, forcing it out for a MACU corner.
  • Miranda was the only other player to get a shot off in the opening half with an attempt that sailed wide left in the 34^th minute, sending both teams into the break with a 0-0 score.
• Second Half
  • It only took John Brown a minute-and-a-half into the second half to find the game-winner. After Caffaro blocked a left side cross on a leaping effort that ended up at the foot of Constantin Bauer, his attempt toward the right post was blocked by the MACU defense. However, the rebound ended up landing right to Kendal Madrigal, who fired in a partially deflected shot just inside the right post to give the Golden Eagles the 1-0 advantage.
  • Just a few minutes later, Amaury Jarry added some insurance for the Eagles when Gabriel Garcia floated a deep left side cross to Madrigal in the deep right corner. Madrigal then pinpointed a perfect cross for Jaury in the middle of the box for the open punch-in, setting the score to 2-0.
  • Mid-America Christian had a chance to get the goal back just 24 seconds later when Haruya Higuchi got behind the JBU defensive, but Golden Eagles goalkeeper Adam Tebbs made a sensational save crashing at the point of attack to keep the JBU two-goal lead intact.
  • Tebbs continued making great saves on the MACU shots that followed as Jeanfreau's long distance strike from the left side was dove at and cleared in the 51^st minute.
  • The Golden Eagles narrowly missed adding a third in the 62^nd minute when Bauer got by his defenders and then dribbled around Caffaro for a wide open shot, but due partially to the tough right side angle, his shot pinged off the post and out, keeping it a two-score game.
  • MACU peppered a few shots on-goal in the final 14 minutes from Federico Palacios, Cabrera, and Higuchi, but none of which were too threatening for the JBU keeper as the Golden Eagles secured the 2-0 win.
• MATCH NOTES
  • Despite giving up the early second half barrage, Mid-America Christian managed to outshoot John Brown by a 9-7 margin with a 6-3 edge in shots on-goal
  • Haruya Higuchi led MACU's attack with three of the nine tries while all three shots made up half of the Evangels' shots on-goal. Federico Palacios also attempted three shots for MACU, but was only able to put one on-goal.
  • After suffering his first career loss in a 1-0 heartbreaker to Oklahoma Panhandle State on Monday, Caffaro dropped his second as he notched just one save in the match.
  • Despite JBU being a powerhouse program in the Sooner Athletic Conference, the result snapped an incredible streak for the Evangels as MACU entered the night on a nine-match bender. The last time Mid-America Christian suffered a loss at the hands of the Golden Eagles came in a 2-1 result at Alumni Field Oct. 7, 2017.
  • Unfortunately, that wasn't the only streak that was snapped on Saturday night as with the loss, MACU can no longer win the SAC regular season title, ending MACU's run of consecutive SAC Championships at four.
  • The lone good news for the Evangels is due to Texas Wesleyan upsetting Oklahoma Panhandle State on its home pitch on Friday, MACU has locked up a top four seed in the SAC Tournament. The Evangels can seal the No. 3 seed with a win or draw against Texas Wesleyan next week and secure the No. 2 spot with OCU losses at home to John Brown on Tuesday and at Central Christian next Friday.

UP NEXT

• Mid-America Christian will look to wrap-up the regular season on a high note on Tuesday night as the Evangels prepare to host Texas Wesleyan for its Senior Night match at the Dill Soccer Field. The Senior Night ceremonies will take place following the conclusion of the women's match before kickoff slated for 7:30 p.m.