The Âé¶¹ÊÓÆµ University soccer team lost their opening game of the 2003 TranSouth Conference Tournament 4-1 to the RedHawks of Martin Methodist. Âé¶¹ÊÓÆµ came in as the No. 5 seed having to travel to No. 4 seeded Martin Methodist in Pulaski, Tenn. Âé¶¹ÊÓÆµ's record falls to 10-5-3 overall. Martin Methodist improves to 7-8 overall and advances to play the No. 1 seed Berry College in the semifinals.
This marked the second time this season that Martin Methodist toppped the Bulldogs. In their regular season meeting on October 4 at Âé¶¹ÊÓÆµ, the Redhawks defeated Âé¶¹ÊÓÆµ 3-2 in overtime.
Head coach Dr. Darin White says of the first round loss, "We more than doubled their shots and played really aggressive, but just couldn't convert on numerous opportunities." Âé¶¹ÊÓÆµ outshot Martin Methodist 22-7 in the game.
Martin Methodist scored two goals in the first half, one in the 25th minute and the other in the 30th minute. Âé¶¹ÊÓÆµ trailed 2-0 at halftime. That scored remained until Âé¶¹ÊÓÆµ tallied a goal in the 80th minute to cut the lead in half. Redzi Stojiljkovic scored the goal with the assits going to Gareth Munro. As the game clock wound down to the final few minutes, Âé¶¹ÊÓÆµ started to attack the goal with all players. Martin Methodist tacked on two goals in the 89 minute to put the final at 4-1.
Robert Stinson tallied two saves in his 90 minutes of work. Martin Methodist's goalie recorded 14 saves on the day.
With the NAIA postseason looking to be over for the Âé¶¹ÊÓÆµ soccer team, the Bulldogs now turn attention to the NCCAA MidEast Region. As of now, they will play Bryan College (17-2) on Thursday, Nov. 13 at 12:00 p.m. CST in Dayton, Tennessee. The winner will advance to the NCCAA National Tournament in Orlando, Florida.