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Scoreboard

0
Beloit College BUCCAN~1 (1-3-1)
2
Winner Carroll CARROLL (2-2-0)
Beloit College BUCCAN~1
(1-3-1)
0
Final
2
Carroll CARROLL
(2-2-0)
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Beloit College BUCCAN~1 0 0 0
Carroll CARROLL 0 2 2

Game Recap: Men's Soccer | | By Jeff Hagenau

Carroll earns first home-field victory of the season

Connell scores two second-half goals as Pioneers post first shutout

WAUKESHA, Wis. - When his team was in desperate need of a goal in the second half, Shea Connell took control of the pressure-packed situation.
Connell, a 6-foot-4 senior striker from Alfaz Del Pi, Spain, scored two unassisted second-half goals to lead the Carroll University men's soccer team to a 2-0 victory over Beloit College in a tough, gritty nonconference game at Schneider Stadium on Saturday night.
It was the first home-field victory of the season for Carroll, which earned its first shutout to improve to 2-2 overall in front of the large, enthusiastic crowd.
The game remained scoreless at the end of the tough, physical opening 45 minutes.
Despite controlling possession and dictating the tempo for the majority of the first half, the Pioneers struggled to finish on several golden opportunities - including Connell's blocked penalty kick at the 19:45 mark and five near misses by the aggressive Carroll offense within the final seven minutes.
Connell, one of nine seniors on the deep roster this season, redeemed himself by converting what proved to be the winning goal at the 50:59 mark.
On the momentum-shifting sequence, Connell fought for position on the left side, took possession, aggressively worked past two defenders and fired a hard-rolling shot into the back of the net.
"After missing on a few opportunities in the first half, I really made it my job to come back strong in the second half and score one," said Connell, who earned prestigious second-team all-conference honors in the talent-laden College Conference of Illinois-Wisconsin last year. "Even though the two defenders were there, I made it my ball and luckily was able to score. As a striker, it can get very frustrating when you miss on a shot so it was all about staying focused on each possession, keeping the head up and working for the next one. It was very satisfying to see it go in.
Coming into the preseason, we knew that we were going to have a good team and face some opponents that we have the potential to beat. From the start of the season, we've approached each game with a strong mentality that has carried us through a season-opening trip to Iowa and two challenging games on our home field. After a tough loss on Wednesday (referring to a 3-1 home-field setback to Concordia University Wisconsin on Sept. 4), it was a good feeling to bounce back today, get a win and continue the Carroll tradition of ringing the victory bell."
Connell, who has a team-leading four goals this season, added an explosive shot from the right side at the 79:42 mark to ensure a victory for the Pioneers.
The Pioneers outshot Beloit by a dominant 28-3 margin - highlighted by a critical 12-0 shot-on-goal advantage.
Carroll second-year head coach Derek Marie was ecstatic about getting a hard-fought victory at home for the first time this season, his team's tenacious performance and the opportunity to ring the bright orange Carroll Victory Bell positioned in the left corner of the field.
"Our guys were persistent and relentless in the way they generated chance after chance and refused to hang their heads when the shots didn't go in," said Marie, of his team's tenacious effort. "We could've easily gone into the locker room and felt bad for ourselves but instead embraced the challenge and came out firing again in the second half. Last year, we struggled to create opportunities but knew that they would eventually come. Tonight, we took advantage of the situation and ran with it in a big way.
"Every win is special but a win at home makes it even more special. This is a young, feisty group that has the ability to accomplish special things when they put it all together. It was just a lot of fun to see it happen."
Stay up to date on Carroll men's soccer this season by going online to www.gopios.com, or by following the Pioneers on Facebook (Carroll University Athletics), Twitter (@pio_athletics), and Instagram (@pio_athletics).


 
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