Box Score GREENSBORO, N.C. – Fourth-seeded Belmont men's soccer dropped to the No. 2 seed UNC Greensboro Spartans, 1-0, Saturday night in the SoCon Men's Soccer Championship match.
Despite the result, the Bruins (7-3-2) finished with one of the program's most successful seasons in school history, as they made their first ever appearance in a conference tournament title match.
Additionally, a record three Belmont players were named to the SoCon All-Tournament Team: junior midfielder Kyle Barks, freshman midfielder AJ Chastonay and senior goalkeeper Drew Romig. The tournament accolade came as Barks' second as a Bruin.
The Spartans (9-2-2) were led by an unassisted goal from sophomore forward Mani Austmann, who found the back of the net in the 80th minute.
Belmont weathered the storm early on, as UNC Greensboro fired a pair of shots in the first three minutes. The Bruins tabbed two shots of their own just two minutes later courtesy of Barks and Chastonay, but neither found the back of the net.
The Spartans logged six shots over the next 24 minutes, but only one warranted saving from Romig. To end the half, Belmont tallied three quick consecutive shots, but were unable to convert.
At the half, the Spartans led by an 8-5 margin in shots, as Romig was only forced to make one save in the first 45 minutes. UNC Greensboro also led in corner kick attempts, 4-0, in the back-and-forth first half.
The Spartans were the aggressor early in the second half, but freshman forward Austin Yowell nearly found the back of the net off a volley inside the box in the 55th minute. UNC Greensboro applied more pressure with three more shots in the next seven minutes.
In one of the Bruins' best chances of the night in the 66th minute, junior forward Ares Marlonsson put a header near the frame, but it grazed just over the crossbar. Senior midfielder Esteban Lestido followed up with another shot one minute later, but it fell off target.
In the 80th minute, the Spartans broke through to take a late 1-0 advantage courtesy of Austmann. Belmont put numbers forward in attempt to equalize but were unable to find the back of the net, as UNC Greensboro logged the 1-0 victory.
In total, the Bruins finished with nine shots to the Spartans 15, while UNC Greensboro also led by a 6-2 margin in corner kicks. Six different Belmont players finished with a shot on the evening.
A SEASON TO REMEMBER: The Bruins' remarkable season set program records in winning percentage (.667), consecutive matches without a loss (7) and tied the school record for shutouts (6).
TOURNAMENT HONORS: A record three Belmont players earned SoCon All-Tournament honors on Saturday. Meanwhile, junior midfielder Kyle Barks was named to the conference all-tournament team for the second time in his career.
