WINTER PARK, Fla. (August 28, 2022) - In an exciting preview of a future Sunshine State Conference battle on October 22, the Rollins Tars and Embry-Riddle Eagles played to a 2-2 draw on Sunday afternoon at
Cahall-Sandspur Field. The result gives Rollins a 1-0-1 record on the year, while Embry-Riddle improves to 0-1-1.
The first half of the game didn't offer much in terms of scoring opportunities, but there was plenty of action. The two teams played equally on offense and defense, with countless balls up for grabs at midfield. Each team only managed two shots each, with
Maximillian Obermeier and Thomas
Loesel recording one save apiece. Rollins spent a good amount of time near the Eagles' goal as they recorded eight corner kicks in the first half.
Following a quick break for halftime, both teams turned up the energy in the second half. In the 56th minute,
Kaden Foreman hurried past his defender on the attack on the left side of the field. As he neared the box, a well-touched pass to Patrick
Horan gave the sophomore an opportunity to blast a shot past the keeper to give Rollins a 1-0 lead.
Five minutes later, Embry-Riddle was awarded a questionable corner kick, and they took advantage of the situation. Eden
Bokobza, who had just checked into the game before the corner, used his big frame to establish position and head a ball into the top corner of the goal to knot the score at one.
As the two teams continued to battle, the intensity showed as whistles were blown at a rapid pace. One of those fouls was committed by Rollins in the attacking zone during an Eagles possession, leading to a penalty kick.
Sandro Henning found the left corner past a diving
Obermeier, giving Embry-Riddle a 2-1 lead with only 18 minutes to go.
Rollins went heavy on the offensive in the final minutes, and produced a number of good looks including a shot from
Georgios Koliniatis that ricocheted off the crossbar. Finally, in the 83rd minute, their aggressiveness paid off.
Ben Burgess delivered a gorgeous ball from midfield all the way to the box where Cole
Cecconi was ready with an impressive header that snuck inside the right post to tie the game at two.
The game would end with the same score moments later. The two teams combined for 26 fouls and five yellow cards were distributed. Rollins
outshot Embry-Riddle 16-9, but only won the shots on goal battle 7-6.
Next up for the Tars is a road match in Pensacola, FL against the #24 West Florida Argonauts. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 pm.
