Offensive Slugfest Ends in Draw with William Carey

Shreveport, La. - At 10:00am under a scorching hot Shreveport sun, two of the top teams in the NAIA squared off to officially begin the 2024-25 soccer season. Traditional soccer fans may not have liked the offensive slugfest that insued, but the passionate Shreveport faithful were on the edge of the seats in this 4-4 draw. 

The Pilots were the first to get on the board when Guillermo Ferreiro found the back of the net on a beautiful feed from Jack Thomas just 10 minutes into the contest. William Carey would respond with a goal of their own when Jamie Wynne slid a pass from the back line to Kolby Godbolt just seven minutes later. Ferreiro would again ignite the Shreveport fans on a very similar goal at the 20 minute mark this time on a fancy feed from the new Pilot, Joel Trub. Going punch-for-punch the Crusaders would tie things up six minutes later on an unassisted goal from Oscar Vallejo. A defensive mistake, followed by an impressive bicycle kick would give WCU a 3-2 lead going into the half. 

A fired up Pilot team would return to the field in the second half with a renewed sense of urgency. Just one minute, Caleb Marchany would knot things back up with an impressive touch from a pinpoint corner kick from Liam Vivian. The half would continue to be very physical with five yellow cards being shown throughout the half. William Carey would again take the lead forcing the Pilot offense to respond. Late in the game, the Pilots would be fouled right outside the 18-yard box setting up the potential game tying set piece. Things would get more exciting when the Crusaders wall would be called for a hand ball that appeared to happen within the box, but the referee made the decision that the ball would be placed right outside the box, nearly on the line. Jack Thomas would drive the free kick directly into the wall this time as the ball would deflect high into the air. After ping ponging between a few players, Thomas would get a second opportunity, driving the ball into the back corner of the net to tie things up at 4. WCU would have two more nerve-wrecking opportunities to score, but an amazing save by Kyle Mcleish with only a couple minutes left would end the game in a tie. 

William Carey would outshoot the Pilots 13-6 while also putting 8 shots on goal to the Pilots 4. LSUS would have 4 saves to the Crusaders 0. 

LSUS will return to action on August 23rd against the defending national champion Pioneers of MidAmerica Nazarene in Olathe, KS. 

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