Principia men's soccer team found the going tough against regionally ranked Augustana College falling 3-0 in a midweek non-conference encounter played in Elsah, IL on Tuesday night.
The gold and blue of Principia were very motivated early on and looked to finally put together a cohesive game plan and the early signs were positive with good combination plays early on that allowed them to break the flanks and get both
Patrick Harber and
Abi Carper into the attack for some good services into the box.
Alan Cheatham's attempt off a Maguire Semnacher whipped service fell in the box but went begging for a final touch into the open net but Robert Bernacle''s attempt was scuffed by the resilient Viking custodian.
In the 27th minute the gold and blue would succumb following a slip on the backside that allowed a viking winger to get a jump on the backside uncontested and lay a ball across the face of the goal for an easy tap in for the lead. That effort was followed closely four minutes later with a similar play but Carper's clearance attempt off the line ricocheted off a Viking attacker for the second goal.
The second half saw a repeat this time following a foul on the flank. The resulting service was met by a determined Viking header to seal the win. This marked the final regular season non-conference matchup for Principia who now shift their focus into battling for a spot in the conference playoffs when they travel to Eureka College on Saturday for a 1pm matchup.
