FLORENCE, SC – Francis Marion University scored a pair of second-half goals, including the match-winner off a nifty short corner, to claim a 2-1 come-from-behind win over the University of North Georgia, Tuesday afternoon (Feb. 16) in Peach Belt Conference men's soccer action.
 
Francis Marion evens its overall and PBC marks at 1-1-1 and will host USC Aiken on Monday at 6 p.m.
 
Second-half substitute Eduardo Meisel registered the match-winning score at the 68:48 mark.  Junior Jafet Santiago took a short corner to begin the sequence.  Junior defender Sam Pollard came charging forward and on his first touch served the ball toward the goal where it glanced off the head of Meisel and into the netting. Meisel had only been on the field for 53 seconds before recording his first score as a Patriot.
 
Francis Marion outshot North Georgia 14-10, including 10-5 over the final 45 minutes as the Patriots rallied from a 1-0 deficit.
 
The Nighthawks (0-3-0, 0-3-0) took a 1-0 advantage in the ninth minute when Santiago Gimenez made a hard run across the top of the penalty area and his deflected pass toward the goal ended up at the feet of Donovan Odier for a 5-yard tap-in shot.
 
Francis Marion equalized at the 64:51 mark when defender Oier Bernaola headed in a bending free kick from the right side by Santiago.
 
FMU senior goalkeeper Maximiliano Rocco recorded four saves, while Nighthawk junior Rafael Callegari made five stops.
 
Only two of the Patriots' five first-half attempts were on frame.  A header near the 6-yard box by junior forward Javier Bello was stopped by a UNG defender on the goal line, and junior Nestor Nunez had his volley shot from 19 yards out snagged by Callegari.
 
After halftime, FMU threatened in the 49th minute when Santiago sent a cross near the Nighthawk goal that just missed the head of sophomore forward Luis Villarreal.  Ten minutes into the second stanza, the Patriots had three shots on target in a span of 1:18 that were all denied by Callegari.
 
Sophomore forward Alvaro Zamora, who led FMU with four shots, nearly added an insurance goal in the 73rd minute, but his attempt from midfield that caught Callegari off his line, went just high and over the crossbar.
 
 
Francis Marion Univ. (1-1-1, 1-1-1) def. Univ. of North Georgia (0-3-0, 0-3-0) 2-1
Date: 02/16/21      Attendance: 68
Weather: Clear, Windy, Cool
 
Goals by period          1  2  Tot
---------------------------------------------
U. of North Georgia.   1  0 -  1
Francis Marion Univ.   0  2 -  2
 
SCORING SUMMARY:
1-0.   8:23 UNG Odier, Donovan (2) (Gimenez, Santiago) - Hard run across top of box by 18, deflected pass from right side of box, 5-yard tap-in
1-1.  64:51 FMU Oier Bernaola (1) (Jafet Santiago) - Header (6-yards out) off bending free kick from right side of field
2-1.  68:48 FMU Eduardo Meisel (1) (Sam Pollard;Jafet Santiago) - Short corner to #5, service toward goal, glancing header by #21
 
Shots: U. of North Georgia 10, Francis Marion Univ. 14 ; Saves: North Georgia 6 (Rafael Callegari 5), Francis Marion 4 (Maximiliano Rocco 4)