WILSON, NC – Francis Marion University was held scoreless for a third straight match on Wednesday night (Oct. 21) and suffered a 1-0 defeat at Barton College in Conference Carolinas men's soccer divisional play at the Bulldogs Athletic Complex.
With the loss, the Patriots fall to 11-4-2 overall with a 7-3-1 mark in league competition. Francis Marion remains fourth in the Conference Carolinas NPI following the defeat entering the final game of the regular season. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs have gained significant momentum after going unbeaten in seven consecutive matches to improve to 6-6-3 this season behind a 5-4-3 record in conference play.
Francis Marion will travel to the University of Mount Olive for the regular season finale on Saturday, Oct. 24, with kickoff slated for 7 p.m.
Both sides tallied a pair of shots in the opening eight minutes of the match before the Patriots were forced to change their defensive backline with an injury in the 11th minute. After Barton recorded two shots on goal, the Bulldogs established a 1-0 lead as Bruno Marques secured a loose ball off a deflection and buried it into the top-left corner of the net at the 24:45 mark. Francis Marion would tally three shots in the closing minutes of the first half. Sophomore forward Bryon Mitchell nearly tied the match in the 37th minute after collecting a loose ball in the box and firing a shot that the Barton goalkeeper saved with a dive.
At halftime, Barton led 7-5 in shots, and both sides attempted two corner kicks.
The Patriots managed to control possession for a majority of the second half, outshooting the Bulldogs by a 15-4 margin. The Barton defense held tight and blocked several shots, while goalkeeper Devin Agostinelli made three saves. Senior forward
Lucas Vila peppered a long-distance shot in the 74th minute, which sailed just over the crossbar. Barton ultimately hung on to capture its first win over the Patriots since 2019.
Graduate student goalkeeper
Vicent Sanchis secured three saves on 11 shots faced in 90 minutes between the posts.
The Patriots finished with a significant 20-11 advantage in total shots while holding a 4-3 edge in corner kicks.
