NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The University of West Alabama men's soccer team fell 2-1 to No. 13 Trevecca Nazarene on Friday night at Trojan Soccer Complex in its regular-season finale.
The Tigers finish the regular season at 6-6-4 overall and 4-3-3 in Gulf South Conference play, while the nationally ranked Trojans improve to 12-1-2 overall and 7-1-2 in conference action.
Trevecca Nazarene opened the scoring in the 26th minute when Judah Jones found the back of the net at 25:40 to give the Trojans a 1-0 advantage. West Alabama created several opportunities to respond before halftime, with David Nunez, Daniele Ciarlesi and Jesper Bakli each putting shots on target. However, Trevecca goalkeeper Hunter Walker made three first-half saves to preserve the Trojans' lead.
Trevecca doubled its advantage early in the second half when Chris Douglas scored at 51:17 off an assist from Jack Franklin, putting the Tigers behind 2-0.
West Alabama continued to battle and cut the deficit in half in the 81st minute. Jesper Bakli scored his eighth goal of the season at 80:22, finishing a chance created by Luke Jovanovich to bring the Tigers within one.
The Tigers pushed for a late equalizer, generating additional opportunities in the closing minutes, but could not find the second goal before time expired.
West Alabama finished with a 13-12 advantage in total shots, putting five attempts on target. Trevecca recorded seven shots on goal, while goalkeeper Dan Erez made five saves for the Tigers. Walker finished with four saves for the Trojans. West Alabama also held a 4-3 edge in corner kicks.
Riley's late goal gave the Tigers a chance to rally, but Trevecca held on for the 2-1 victory to close out the regular season.
Next Match
West Alabama now turns its attention to the GSC Men's Soccer Championship, where the Tigers enter the tournament as the No. 6 seed. West Alabama will travel to face No. 3 seed Alabama-Huntsville at Charger Park on Saturday, October 31. Kickoff time is to be announced.
