The Eastern New Mexico men’s soccer season came to an end on Saturday afternoon as the Hounds fell to nationally 15th-ranked West Texas A&M 3-1 on Saturday afternoon at Greyhound Stadium.
It was a successful season for the Greyhounds as they finished the season with an 8-8-1 overall record and a 6-6-2 mark in Heartland Conference play. The Hounds had four and a tie more than last season and it was the first time Eastern had finished a season .500 or better since 2014.

The Buffs jumped out to an early lead in the first half, as WTAMU’s Stefan Andjelic slipped a shot past Hounds goalkeeper Ross Dalton from 15-yards out at the 11:43 mark.

In the 23rd minute, the Buffs added to their lead when an a West Texas corner kick deflected off an ENMU defender to the Buffs’ Michael Garcia and his shot found the back of the net to make it a two-goal advantage.
The Buffs could have made it a three-goal lead at the 39:33 mark, but Dalton made a tremendous leaping one-hand save toward the top right corner of the goal, forcing the ball out of bounds for a Buffs corner kick.
Senior Jose Tabares-Ochoa had an opportunity to cut into the deficit at the 41:02 mark off a breakaway, but his shot from the left side was saved, preserving the Buffs 2-0 lead going into the halftime locker room.

The Hounds started to mount a rally early in the second half. In the 51st minute, Fernando Lozano’s cross from the right side found Gregory Franusic in the box and his header found the net to make it just a one-goal deficit at 2-1.
However, the Buffs had an immediate response. At the 54:59 mark, Lucca Lima put WTAMU back ahead by two as the Hounds keeper could not corral a loose ball in the box, making it a 3-1 Buffs edge.

Dalton was able to make five more strong saves to keep the Hounds in it, but Eastern could only manage one more shot on-goal for the remainder of the match.

The goal by Franusic was his third goal of the season while Lozano’s assist was his first of the year. Peres led the Hounds offense with four of their 11 shots while Julian Trapp fired three shots, placing one on-goal.
Dalton took the loss in-goal for the Hounds, giving up three goals and tying a season-high six saves.

Before the start of today’s game, Eastern New Mexico honored its three seniors, Brandon Bautista, Jesus Garcia, and Jose Tabares-Ochoa.