(September 7, 2022) Mena, Arkansas – The men of Bucks Soccer enter today's matchup with Eastern Oklahoma State 1-1 in Region II after a win on the road at Murray State College. The Mountaineers are 1-0 in early region play after their last game was postponed due to weather over Labor Day weekend. Today's matchup could play big in the final region standings heading into the Region II Tournament in late October.
For the first 25 minutes of the game, both teams would go back and forth in the midfield with each getting shots off. A pair of corners for Eastern Oklahoma nearly led to a goal, but freshmen goalkeeper Connor Wachtel (Grapevine, TX) got a hand on the ball to prevent the Mountaineers from taking a 1-0 lead. He would later make another save on a corner to prevent a goal to keep the match scoreless. In the 30th minute, the Bucks had a scoring opportunity after a foul on the Mountaineers, but the header was off target. In the 41st minute, the Bucks committed a foul in the box to setup a penalty kick, but the Mountaineers missed the goal. Two minute later, Connor Wachtel made another save with his feet to keep the match scoreless. The Bucks countered after the corner but missed the opportunity, and the match went to the half tied at 0-0.
In the second half, the Bucks missed a few opportunities in the first 10 minutes of the half. Play continued and both teams went back and forth with both teams having chances, but the match remained scoreless at the midway water break. Eastern would possess the ball after the break. The Bucks would counter and fire a shot on goal in the 80th minute, but the Mountaineers countered and maintained possession for the remainder of the half. The Bucks defense held off multiple free kicks and corner kicks to send the match into overtime.
In the first overtime, play was much of the same. The Bucks could not maintain possession and continued to have to fight off corner kicks to prolong the match into the second overtime. The Bucks had one opportunity in the second overtime, but it was unsuccessful. The Bucks and Mountaineers played to a draw, 0-0.
The Bucks return to action on Sunday, September 11th, at Crowder College. Kickoff is scheduled for 4 pm in Neosho, MO.
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