WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – The No. 19 MACU Men's Soccer team got off to a phenomenal start against No. 17 Keiser by jumping out to a 2-0 lead at the half, but the Seahawks made some halftime adjustments to rally for a 3-2 win at Arrigo-Vecellio Field on Saturday morning.
 
SCORING SUMMARY

• 1^st Half – MACU – 5:10 – Goal: Hayden Hoxie (1) – MACU 1, KU 0
• 1^st Half – MACU – 33:16 – Goal: Necsar Rojas (1), Assist: Federico Palacios – MACU 2, KU 0
• 2^nd Half – KU – 46:34 – Goal: Raul Cedillo (2), Assist: Mohammed Mouzoune – MACU 2, KU 1
• 2^nd Half – KU – 58:07 – Goal: Sergio Padin (1) – MACU 2, KU 2
• 2^nd Half – KU – 59:18 – Goal: Raul Cedillo (3), Assist: Mohammed Mouzoune – KU 3, MACU 2

MATCH SUMMARY

• First Half
  • Mid-America Christian took advantage of its first opportunity when Henry Tolbert was tripped up and fouled just outside of Keiser's box, setting up a free kick for Carlos Lobo. With the captain taking a sharp liner directly on-goal from 23 yards out being saved, Hayden Hoxie cleaned things up by punching the rebounded save just inside the left post in the sixth minute to make it a 1-0 MACU lead.
  • Keiser tried to muster some equalizers off of corner kicks in the 21^st and 30^th minutes, but the header shots from Santiago Duque and Manu Cordeviola both sailed high to keep the MACU lead at one.
  • In the 32^nd minute, it looked like MACU was going to have a great chance when Ryan Jeanfreau got behind the Keiser defense to have a one-on-one with the keeper on the right side, but due to a tight angle and the goalie crashing the attack, Jeanfreau's shot was saved, forcing a corner kick.
  • On Federico Palacios' right side corner, the Evangels found some insurance as the well-placed freebie found Necsar Rojas on the left side, redirecting a pass toward the right side for Jeanfreau to just get a piece and redirected in, setting the score to 2-0.
  • Keiser finally got its first shot on-goal in the 40^th minute as freshman keeper Dante Caffaro made his first career MACU save before a great long-distance chance by KU's Mikael Baisotti sailed just wide left of post to keep it to 2-0 heading into the half.
• Second Half
  • Keiser was able to get some momentum right out of the gate as great relay of passing found Mohammed Mouzoune breaking open down the left side before relaying it to Raul Cedillo for the open shot pinned inside the left post to cut the Seahawks deficit to 2-1 in the 47^th minute.
  • KU had another look at a potential equalizer in the 51^st minute when a deep left side cross found the foot of Baisotti breaking down the right side, but his strong strike toward the right post was sent into the right-side netting, keeping the MACU lead intact.
  • Unfortunately, the lead didn't hold as a foul called on MACU just outside the box in the 58^th minute set up the Seahawks with a very dangerous free kick. While the Evangels managed to block Keanu Does initial shot, Sergio Padin tracked down the rebound and rifled a shot into the top left corner to tie it.
  • Just a few moments later, Keiser jumped out in-front when a deep send down the left side allowed Mouzoune to connect with Cedillo once again, slipping a shot just inside the low left post to give the Seahawks the 3-2 edge in the 60^th minute.
  • The Evangels found themselves needing to overcome an even larger uphill climb when Henry Tolbert was his assessed his second yellow in the 65^th minute, forcing the Evangels to play down a man for the remaining 25 minutes.
  • With MACU shorthanded, the Seahawks had some great chances to add insurance in the 77^th, 80^th and 81^st minutes, but MACU goalkeeper Natan Admassu, who came in in the second half made three strong saves to keep it a one goal game.
  • MACU was unable to find the equalizing goal down the stretch as Keiser held on for the 3-2 win.

MATCH NOTES

• Keiser controlled the offensive front, outshooting Mid-America Christian 20-3 with a 10-3 difference in shots on-goal.
• In an interesting turn of events, most of MACU's offensive efforts came from its two center-backs as freshman Hayden Hoxie and junior Necsar Rojas scored their first career Evangels goals while Federico Palacios was credited with an assist on Rojas' score.
• Dante Caffaro and Natan Admassu split time in goal for MACU with their first career appearances. Caffaro got the start, allowing a goal and tallying a save in 53 minutes before Natan Admassu came in during the second half and despite allowing a pair of goals, made six strong saves in-net in 36 minutes of action, most of which came with MACU playing down a man.
• The match was the first ever meeting between the two powerhouse programs.

UP NEXT

• Mid-America Christian will be looking to get some reprieve by returning home for its second match, but the Evangels will face another strong challenge from No. 4 Oklahoma Wesleyan on Thursday, Sept. 11. The match is slated for a 7:30 p.m. kickoff at the Dill Soccer Field.