BETHANY, Okla. — 4th-year midfielder Hayden Teixeira gave Harding an early second-half lead, but Southern Nazarene responded with three unanswered goals to hand the Bisons a 3-1 setback in their Great American Conference opener Thursday night at Wanda Rhodes Soccer Complex.
After a scoreless opening 45 minutes, Harding (0-6-0, 0-1-0 GAC) broke through in the 52nd minute when 3rd-year forward Nojus Grudis set up Teixeira for his first goal of the season.
The Crimson Storm (4-2-0, 1-0-0 GAC) answered quickly, leveling the match in the 58th minute on an unassisted strike by Diego Zamora. Southern Nazarene applied continuous pressure late in the second period before Ryunosuke Noda netted the go-ahead goal in the 83rd minute off a pass from Pedro Belmont. Belmont added a second assist six minutes later, setting up Bekir Lekic in the 89th minute to lock up the victory for the hosts.
Match Notes
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Shot Advantage: Southern Nazarene held a 30-10 advantage in total shots and a 9-6 edge in shots on goal. The Crimson Storm also earned 12 corner kicks to Harding's five.
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In Net: 2nd-year goalkeeper Dillon Hart made six saves in his second full start of the season for Harding. Ewen Persehaie earned the win for SNU, stopping five of the six shots he faced.
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Attack Leaders: 3rd-year defender Dylan Chambers led Harding's backline push with three shots (two on target), while 4th-year forward Reik Barrack added three shot attempts off the bench.
Up Next
Harding continues its non-conference road swing Sunday, Sept. 20, taking on West Alabama in Livingston, Alabama. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.
