10/27/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
CONWAY, S.C. — Sometimes in sports, the outcome isn't always indicative of the way the game was played, and Coastal Carolina's men's soccer team was given a harsh lesson in that fact Saturday afternoon, losing to Liberty 2-0 at the CCU Soccer Stadium.
The Chanticleers dominated the game from start to finish, but second half goals by Brentley Kellum and Jason Streets were enough to give Liberty the victory, and propel the Flames (5-7-0, 4-1-0) past Coastal for first place in the Big South Conference. The Chants drop to 5-7-1 overall, and 3-2-1 in the conference.
"Coastal showed why they were the preseaon pick to win the conference,'' Liberty coach Jeff Alder said. "They were all over us in the first half, and we were fortunate to make it to the half scoreless. We improved our decision making in the second half, and were able to take advantage of our opportunities. Dean Short, our goalkeeper, had a great day, and we were fortunate to get away with the win.''
Outshooting the Flames (5-7-0, 4-1-0) 8-1 in the first half, and 15-3 for the game, Coastal had the lion's share of the good scoring opportunities, but Short came up big time and time again, making nine saves on the day, including a spectacular diving stop on Joseph Ngwenya's blast from 16 yards out in the 10th minute that set the tone for the match.
After missing on two point blank opportunities in the closing minutes of the first half, the Chants came out of the break sluggish, allowing their final two shots of the game. Both of which, however, found the back of the net, as Kellum tallied the game-winner in the 51st minute, finding the ball from nine yards after Alan Pike served a freekick into the box. Liberty sealed the game seven minutes later, as Streets converted a penalty kick, after a controversial handball was called against CCU's Dario Grassino in front of Coastal's net.
"I was encouraged by the way we played today,'' Chanticleer coach Shaun Docking said. "I thought we played well, but once again we saw a few mental lapses that are part of having such a young team. Liberty is a good team, and we just have to learn from this, and allow it to help us as we approach the end of the regular season.''
With the loss, Coastal remains just one point ahead of Winthrop for second place in the conference race, but the Eagles have two games in hand. Coastal returns to action next weekend playing in the College of Charleston Invitational, before finishing the conference season by hosting Winthrop on Nov. 7.
