FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Two near equalizers were thwarted in the 89^th minute, as Nova Southeastern dropped its 2019 regular season opener in gut-wrenching fashion by a final score of 2-1 Thursday night against St. Thomas (Fla.). The Sharks took command early in the sixth minute on a goal by sophomore Michael Lawrence. Yet, the Bobcats responded with two to scores of their own later in the first half before eventually holding off Nova Southeastern down the stretch.  

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Score: St. Thomas (Fla.) 2, Nova Southeastern 1
Records: St. Thomas (Fla.) (2-0), Nova Southeastern (0-1)
Location: NSU Soccer Complex | Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Get Social: Twitter - @NSU_MSoccer | Instagram - @nsu_msoccer | Facebook - /nsusoccer

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Nova Southeastern brought the energy in the opening moments, earning two solid looks on goal less than three minutes into the match. The third look would prove to be the charm, though, in the sixth minute. In his Sharks debut, left back Quentin Aguilar delivered a beautiful ball to Lawrence near the top of the 18-yard box. From there, Lawrence gathered possession and fired a low shot past the Bobcats' diving keeper and into the back of the net.
• Still in front 1-0 in the 12^th minute, Aleks Berg threatened to double the lead, but had his shot corralled by St. Thomas keeper Michael Marx. The Bobcats would withstand the surge and soon wrestled back a bit of momentum when Tobias Rodriguez set up Mads Rismoen for the equalizer less than 10 minutes later.
• St. Thomas was outshot by a 21-8 margin in the match. However, the Bobcats made their opportunities count, as was the case in the 36^th minute after Oliver Noevik converted a feed across the goal mouth from teammate Santiago Gil to hand the visitors a 2-1 advantage.
• Seeking to knot up the ball game, the Sharks controlled much of the second half, tallying 12 shots as opposed to just three from St. Thomas in the final 45 minutes.
• Juanchi Nunez created a scoring chance midway through the half. However, the right-footed attempt was deflected by a sliding defender at the last second, forcing the ball out of danger.
• On a night in which he recorded four saves, Nova Southeastern keeper Titouan Le Roux kept the Sharks within striking distance with roughly 12 minutes remaining, making back-to-back, reflex saves on shots from point-blank range.
• The senior's efforts looked as though they'd pay off, as the Sharks pushed the Bobcats to the brink in the 89^th minute. With all 11 players pushed forward, Curtis Thorn's initial shot was deflected by Marx, yet the rebound remained in the box. Sebastian Loibl collected the miss with a second chance in the late stages. However, the junior watched his charging attempt sail high, allowing St. Thomas to escape with the win.

UP NEXT:
The Sharks will attempt to even their record when they return to action this Sunday at 11 a.m. in a non-conference clash with Georgian Court. For online coverage of the action, visit the schedule page on NSUSharks.com or follow the Sharks on Twitter @NSU_MSoccer.
 

Season opener goes down to the wire. Hear Coach Moore's thoughts following the tough, 2-1 defeat. pic.twitter.com/t7SCLMYIbn

— NSU Men's Soccer (@NSU_MSoccer) September 6, 2019