Freshman forward Julian Trapp scored a pair of goals, including the go-ahead goal in the second half to lead the Eastern New Mexico men’s soccer team to a 2-1 victory over St. Edward’s on Saturday afternoon in Heartland Conference play.
The Hilltoppers (6-8-1, 5-6-1 HC) notched the match’s first goal in the 22nd minute. A steal near midfield led to a fastbreak, as Dylan Armstrong found George Murray on the left side of the goal box and his shot from five yards out slipped past Hounds goalkeeper Ross Dalton to make it a 1-0 game.
Trapp had a golden opportunity at an equalizer 26th minutes as he beat the defense off a long pass down the right side. His shot from 10 yards out hit the outside of the net in the top right corner, just inches from sneaking in for the Hounds first goal of the contest.
In the waning seconds of the first half, Trapp got his redemption. With just three seconds remaining in the half, the Hilltoppers were called for a foul just inside goal box. On the free kick, freshman midfielder Marvin Lewin found Trapp on the right side as this time his shot found the back of the net before time expired to tie the match up 1-all heading into the halftime break.
Both teams played evenly in the first half, as each team finished with six shots and three shots on-goal.
Eastern took the lead for good at the 59:18 mark. Entering the 60th minute, freshman forward Aderi Arthur-Dede received a throw in from the right side and he tapped a pass back to Trapp, who was able to beat the defense and fire a shot in from the right side from five yards out past the keeper to give the Hounds the 2-1 advantage.
Eastern was able to limit St. Edward’s to just three shots following the go-ahead goal, neither of which were on-goal. SEU’s best opportunity came in the 86th minute, but the Hilltoppers header off a corner kick sailed high and the Hounds were able to preserve the victory.
Trapp’s two goals led the offensive efforts, as it was the third time this season a Greyhound scored two goals in a match. The previous two outings came on Oct. 4 as Arthur-Dede scored a pair of goals in a 5-2 victory over UT-Permian Basin and Arthur-Dede did it once more last week on Oct. 13 in a 2-1 win at Oklahoma Christian.
Lewin’s assist in the first half was his second this season while Arthur-Dede’s second half assist was his second as well, adding a point to his team-leading 18 on the season.
Dalton picked up the victory in-net for the Hounds, as he conceded just one goal and made two outstanding saves to preserve the win.
Even though the Hilltoppers were able to outshoot Eastern 10-8 in the contest, the Hounds defense limited them to just three shots on-goal while the Hounds accurately placed five of their eight shot on-net.
With the victory, ENMU strengthened their playoff chances with 20 conference points, tied for fourth-most in the Heartland Conference. The Hounds currently hold a tie for the Heartland West Division lead with Lubbock Christian and will have the opportunity to take it outright.
On Oct. 25, the Hounds will host Lubbock Christian in a match with the division title at stake. The match is slated for a 7 p.m. start at Greyhound Stadium.
