WINTER PARK, Fla. -
Kyle Carr scored two goals in the final game of the Florida Southern College men's soccer 2022 season on Friday evening, but unfortunately, it wasn't enough to overtake the No. 24 Rollins College Tars as the Mocs fell 3-2. Florida Southern concluded its season with a 4-4-7 record overall after the loss.
The Mocs got out to a hot start. In less than two minutes
Sam Michaels tapped the ball to Carr who snuck behind Rollin's back line and rifled the ball past Rollins' keeper and into the back of the net.
Rollins, desperate to answer, began to press the Moc's defense extremely hard in the next several minutes. After Goalkeeper
AJ Pearce saved three shots in the first twelve minutes, Rollins managed to convert a corner into a goal as Ninrod Picado headed the ball in. The score remained 1-1 for the rest of the half.
Rollins came out firing in the second half which forced the Mocs to shift their focus to defending the multitude of shots coming from the Tars.
Finally, in the 67th minute, the Mocs got the chance they needed after some fancy footwork from
Dylan Lowther who broke several defenders before dishing the ball to a wide-open Michaels, who crossed the ball into Carr in the box. Carr out-jumped several defenders and headed the ball into the net for his second goal of the game.
After the goal from the Mocs, Rollins continued their offensive assault and connected in the 70th minute to tie the game back up at 2-2. Then again in the 75th minute, Rollins scored on a counter-attack to take their first lead of the game.
The Mocs did all they could to fend off Rollins' 22 shots on goal. In the end, they fell victim to the relentless pressure of the Tars offense despite Pearce posting a season-high of eight saves.
Although it was not the end of the season that Florida Southern was hoping for, the team is led by a young core and is expecting the majority of the roster to return next year. One thing is for sure: the future is bright for the Mocs.
