Men's Soccer Falls To Regionally Ninth-Ranked Francis Marion 2-0

Men's Soccer Falls To Regionally Ninth-Ranked Francis Marion 2-0

Mount Olive outshot regionally ninth-ranked Francis Marion in the second half, but was denied a goal as the Trojans fell to the Patriots 2-0 in non-conference men's soccer Wednesday at Amon Field. The loss snapped the Trojans' two-match winning streak.

Mount Olive (2-2-0) narrowly missed getting on the scoreboard on a counterattack midway through the first half. Cooper Gaypia shot from 15 yards out but Francis Marion goalkeeper Jonathan Mannes got a hand on the ball to keep the match scoreless. Mannes also recorded saves two minutes apart midway through the second half on shots by Trevor Knight and Malick Chune.

Francis Marion (3-1-1) broke the deadlock at 32:41 on Anton Jonsson's goal in the upper 90 after a cross from Peter Beniseu. The goal ended a streak of 215 shutout minutes by Trojan goalkeepers. Levin Sandmann added an insurance goal for the Patriots at the 66:25 mark.

The Trojans outshot Francis Marion 9-5 in the second half, but the Patriots finished with a 14-13 shot advantage for the match. Nick Bernsdorf recorded five saves for Mount Olive, while Mannes compiled seven saves for FMU.

Mount Olive resumes Conference Carolinas play Saturday as the Trojans play host to Belmont Abbey College. Match time is 7 p.m. at Amon Field.