JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Nov. 6, 2022) – The ETSU men’s soccer team had a lot of positives in the first year of the David Lilly era; however, it didn’t end the way the Buccaneers were hoping for.

Hosting a Southern Conference semifinal match on Sunday afternoon at Summers-Taylor Stadium, the No. 2 seed Buccaneers suffered a 1-0 setback to No. 3 Mercer.

Playing their final game of the season, the Bucs ended the season with an overall record of 8-6-3 – a four-win improvement from last year.

SCORING

• 17’ – Dylan Gaither scored on a free kick for Mercer.

MATCH SUMMARY

• In the quiet opening minutes of the contest, the Bucs had their only shot blocked by the Bear defense, keeping the game scoreless.
• Winning a free kick in the 17th minute, Mercer capitalized off their only shot on target in the first half as Gaither played a ball in the box which passed by some traffic to find the back of the net.
• Trying to answer back, the Bucs had an opportunity in the 21st minute when Dominic Foster (London, England)had an opportunity to header a cross, which was eventually saved by Mercer goalkeeper Trever McMullen.
• In the opening half, the Bucs only allowed one shot on target, while registering five of their own.
• To start the second half, ETSU goalkeeper Cole Hunter (Mount Juliet, Tenn.) recorded one of his two saves in the 48th minute to keep the score 1-0.
• Hunting for his 12th goal, Kieran Richards (Hamilton, New Zealand) saw his opportunity 10 minutes into the second half saved by McMullen.
• Defending their goal, the Bears last shot came in the 69th minute as Hunter recorded his second save of the afternoon.
• Playing the majority of the second half, Josh Hancock (Torbay, England) had the Bucs’ final opportunity with a header that was saved on the line by McMullen, holding ETSU scoreless in the 88th minute of the contest.

QUICK KICKS

• The Bucs outshot Mercer 8-6 in total and 4-3 with shots on target.
• Sebastian Reventlow-Mourier (Viborg, Denmark) was the only Buc to play all 90 minutes for ETSU.
• With the win, No. 3 Mercer will face No. 1 UNC Greensboro on Saturday for the SoCon championship.
• On the season, Richards tied the program record with 11 goals, while Hunter was tabbed SoCon Goalkeeper of the Year. In total, the Bucs landed seven all-conference honors in 2022.