CLINTON, Miss. – The UT Tyler men's soccer team opened the 2019 campaign with a 3-0 defeat to Mississippi College in the first game of a two-game road trip to take on a pair of non-conference NCAA Division II opponents.
In the season opener for both teams, Mississippi College scored on a deflected shot in the 19
th minutes of the first half to take a 1-0 lead. The Choctaws added a pair of insurance goals in the first six minutes of the second half and held off UT Tyler the rest of the way.
How It Happened: Senior goalkeeper
Parker O'Quinn made three saves in the first 3:30 of the game, holding off an eager Mississippi College attack to keep the game scoreless until the 19
th minute. A shot across the face of the goal deflected off a UT Tyler defender into the goal, giving the Choctaws a goal on the deflection for a 1-0 lead.
The teams were even in shots (3-3) over the rest of the first half, but Mississippi College put the ball in the back of the net for a pair of goals just 90 seconds apart. Isaac Gonzalez scored the first of the pair in the 50
th minute, while Owen Connelly added another in the 51
st to extend the lead to 3-0. O'Quinn made three more saves the rest of the way to finish with eight saves, his highest total at UT Tyler and one off his career-high nine during his 2017 season at Lubbock Christian.
By The Numbers: Seniors
Uriah Shipman and
Travis Collins combined for half of UT Tyler's eight shots in the game, registering two each… Both of Shipman's shots were on frame but saved by Choctaw goalkeeper Alejandro Chavarria… Mississippi College finished with an 18-8 edge in shots and posted a 12-5 margin in corner kicks.
What's Next: The Patriots conclude the two-game road trip with a Sunday, Sept. 8 visit to Delta State University, with kickoff slated for 3 p.m.
Quotable (UT Tyler head coach Kenny Jones): "We have a lot of new people, and we played a lot of different players so we could get some experience; we're going to have that type of challenge all year in trying to gain experience while minimizing our mistakes."
"(Parker) had a great game. He's a true leader on the field, and he looked like a senior goalkeeper. He did his job very well. Travis (Collins) was energetic and buzzing around, and Uriah (Shipman) also did well and was very aware of where he needed to be. The challenge for us now is getting everyone on the same page. The guys I mentioned have played a lot collegiately, and we're trying to get them on the same page with the guys who haven't played as much at this level."
"There are so many factors which lead to goals, and they put us under pressure today. We had a couple moments we didn't deal with very well, but I feel strongly we'll be able to fix it after we look at the film. I'm anxious to see what our success will look like, because we have enough potential to be really good so long as we continue to work hard together."
