Barton, Converse and Emmanuel Advance in Men’s Soccer Championship

11/1/2023 11:37:14 PM

BELMONT/WILSON N.C./SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The 2023 Conference Carolinas Men’s Soccer Championship kicked off on Wednesday night and sixth-seeded Barton, fifth-seeded Converse and ninth-seeded Emmanuel each advanced to the second round.

In the top half of the bracket, Emmanuel (8-5-3) traveled to Belmont and upset fourth-ranked Belmont Abbey (10-5-3), 2-1 in overtime while Converse (10-4-3) survived an upset bid from No. 8 Lees-McRae (4-8-5) in Spartanburg. The Lions will travel to face the Valkyries on Saturday, Nov. 4 at 2 p.m. with the winner to face top-seeded Francis Marion in the semifinals on Friday, Nov. 10 at 11 a.m. at Truist Soccer Complex at Bryan Park in Browns Summit, North Carolina.

The first game of the day in Belmont was a thriller as the team’s played a scoreless game until the 74th minute when an Emmanuel throw-in sailed into the box and found the head of Rafael Calderon who found the corner of the net for the 1-0 lead. The Lions looked destined for an upset in regulation, but with 23 seconds left, Zion Duncan drilled a loose ball from the top of the box and snuck his shot inside the upper left 90 for the equalizer. It looked as though the contest would end in penalty kicks until the 109th minute when the Lions converted a set piece from the corner as Tomas Pollacchi sent a service into the box and Ross Lamont headed it home for the game-winner. Emmanuel outshot Belmont Abbey 14-13 in the contest. The Crusaders put seven shots on frame to the Lions’ five.

It was a back-and-forth contest in Spartanburg as each team scored a goal in each half before Converse netted the equalizer in the first overtime. It was actually Lees-McRae who scored first in the 27th minute as David Garcia found Caden Pierce for the first goal of the contest. Less than 10 minutes later in the 36th minute Joel Houston scored unassisted to even the contest. In the 62nd minute, Gabriel Verona put the home team ahead via a penalty kick, but the Bobcats responded quickly in the 65th minute as Gray Smith delivered the equalizer with an assist from Noah Daragmeh. The game-winner came in the 96th minute as Sinan Kilincarslan fed Nicholas Gartung for the 3-2 victory. The Valkyries outshot Lees-McRae 27-10 in the contest and had a 14-7 margin in shots on goal.

In Wilson, the Bulldogs (7-6-4) scored early in the second half to defeat seventh-seeded Mount Olive (4-8-4), 1-0. After the teams played an even opening 45, the home team scored in the 58th minute as Gio Vences delivered a touch pass to Luis Weber on the right side of the box and he buried a shot in the right corner for the game-winner. Barton outshot the Trojans 16-10 in the contest with a 6-4 edge in shots on frame.

Barton will travel to Young Harris, Georgia to face No. 3 seed Young Harris in the quarterfinals on Saturday, Nov. 4 at 4 p.m. The winner will advance to the semifinals to face No. 2 Chowan on Friday, Nov. 10 at 1:30 p.m. in Browns Summit.

Fans can watch every game of the tournament live via the Conference Carolinas Digital Network and BlueFrame at conferencecarolinasdn.com. Information regarding the championship schedule, bracket and the Truist Soccer Complex at Bryan Park are available here.

2023 Conference Carolinas Men’s Soccer Championship
First Round – Wednesday, November 1 (Higher Seed Hosts)
#9 Emmanuel def. #4 Belmont Abbey, 2-1 (OT)
#5 Converse def. #8 Lees-McRae, 3-2 (OT)
#6 Barton def. #7 Mount Olive, 1-0

Quarterfinals – Saturday, November 4 (Higher Seed Hosts)
#9 Emmanuel at #5 Converse, 2:00 p.m.
#6 Barton at #3 Young Harris, 4:00 p.m.

Semifinals – Friday, November 10 (Truist Soccer Complex at Bryan Park – Browns Summit, N.C.)
Winner #4-#9 vs. #1 Francis Marion, 11:00 a.m.
Winner of #3-#6 vs. #2 Chowan, 1:30 p.m.

Final – Sunday, November 12 (Truist Soccer Complex at Bryan Park – Browns Summit, N.C.)
Winner of Semifinal #1 vs. Winner of Semifinal #2, 1 p.m.