Box Score CHARLESTON, Ill. – The Belmont Bruins dropped a 3-2 overtime bout with the Eastern Illinois Panthers at Lakeside Field Tuesday afternoon.
Sophomore forward Niccolo Dagnoni (52nd minute) and freshman midfielder Corey Lavinder (62nd minute) propelled the Bruins with a pair of goals, as Lavinder's goal came as the first of his career at Belmont.
The junior duo of forward Jordan Dozzi and midfielder Nigel Leo each recorded assists on Dagnoni's second goal of the season.
Junior midfielder/forward Davi Girardi scored the Panthers match-winning 95th-minute goal.
The Bruins got to work quick in the fourth minute, as Dozzi logged Belmont's first shot on goal of the afternoon. Junior goalkeeper Nicolo Dini came up big for the Bruins between the posts with his first save of the match on a free kick from the Panthers in the 13th minute.
The first of junior midfielder Esteban Lestido's first-half scoring opportunities came in the 15th minute, as Dagnoni followed up with a shot just one minute later.
Belmont's best look came in the final minute of the first half, as it took a diving save from Eastern Illinois to stop Lestido's second shot on goal.
Overall, the Bruins led the Panthers in shots (4) and shots on goal (3) after 45 minutes, as Dini logged two first-half saves.
Coming out of half, Eastern Illinois took a 1-0 lead from the head of senior midfielder Edgar Mesa on its third corner kick of the match in the 50th minute. Just two minutes later, Belmont responded, as Dagnoni tallied the equalizer on a service from Dozzi and Leo.
Lavinder's first collegiate goal awarded the Bruins their first lead of the night in the 62nd minute on a redirect off the Panthers goalkeeper.
The back-and-forth continued, as junior forward Shady Omar leveled the match for Eastern Illinois at 2-2 on a 65th-minute goal from the top of the box.
Belmont recorded two shots in the final 10 minutes of regulation but were unable to convert, sending the Bruins to extra time for the second time in the 2019 season.
Dozzi fired a pair of shots within the first four minutes of overtime to apply pressure for Belmont, but Eastern Illinois netted its first shot attempt of overtime to notch the victory. Girardi connected on his first shot of the afternoon for the Panthers on a cross from senior midfielder/forward Christian Sosnowski.
The Bruins tallied their second-consecutive matchup with seven or more shots on goal, as Dagnoni and Dozzi each nabbed four shots apiece. Dozzi's 52nd-minute assist to Dagnoni was the first of his career at Belmont.
UP NEXT: The Bruins return home Saturday night to host the Faulkner Eagles at E.S. Rose Park. Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. Belmont then hits the road for its final non-conference match of the season against the Louisville Cardinals on Tuesday, Oct. 1.
