CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky. – The long awaited start of the season is here. Campbellsville University men's soccer kicked off the 2013-14 athletics calendar Saturday, Aug. 24 at Citizens Bank Field in Finley Stadium with a 2-1 double-overtime win over Spring Arbor University (Mich.).

Despite finishing the game with only nine of its players on the field, due to red card ejections, CU held on for the season opening victory in the 103^rd minute. Spring Arbor also had a player ejected in regulation. All ejections took place in the second half of play.

Offensively, Campbellsville jumped ahead of Spring Arbor early. Tiger junior forward Gustav Carlsson found the back of the net in just the seventh minute of play. Carlsson played a ball from around 16 yards out, which was relayed to him from the foot of sophomore forward Roraigh Yearwood, who was credited with the assist.

Carlsson's goal gave CU its first and only goal of regulation, CU 1-0.

Spring Arbor did not answer Carlsson's goal until the 39^th minute, doing so by means of a penalty kick when Spring Arbor forward Joel Musambi was tackled in the 18-yard box by CU sophomore goalkeeper Max Malachiyev.

Malachiyev was issued both a foul and a yellow card on the play, moments before Musambi converted the PK to a 1-1 tie, shooting to the right of the Tigers' keeper.

Malachiyev's yellow card was one of three yellow cards issued to the Tigers in the first half of play, which ended in a 1-1 tie.

Upon the start of the second half, CU was issued a red card and an additional two more yellow cards in the opening minutes of play. The result was the ejections of sophomore midfielder Alex Ryan on a rough play at midfield; and freshman midfielder Ross Lindsay, who received two yellow cards in the second half. The ejections suddenly made it an 11 vs. 9 game.

CU Head Coach Adam Preston was quick to note the endurance factor that coincides with playing a man down; or in this case, two.

"We were exhausted being down two men, but we came back," Preston said of his team's second-half effort. "(Spring Arbor) did a good job working us over. They played (No. 3 Lindsey Wilson College) two nights ago, and I just want to give them full credit. They fought, and if they're a fresh team, I'm not sure the outcome doesn't end differently. But our guys dug deep. When we do our camp during those two weeks at the beginning of the year, and we are running hills (at Miller Park) and all of that, that's when we find out that we have more than we thought we had. One of the players came to me after the game and said now he understands what we mean when we say, 'finding more than what you thought you had.' This team dug deep, and they found it, so credit to the guys today."

Not long after Campbellsville lost its second player to cards, Spring Arbor's Patrick Rose was issued a red card, evening the field slightly and allowing CU a chance to attack more.

CU made a handful of late runs towards the end of regulation, showing no regard to the obvious disadvantage playing with only nine players. Sophomore forward, Eurodger Bargblor Jr., who for moments was playing as the only CU forward, displayed his speed multiple times late in the game but was not able to find the net.

Bargblor Jr. tallied two shots in the final minutes of regulation; the first being saved by the Spring Arbor goalkeeper, and then just missing wide on the next.
 

CU freshman forward Guilherme Cheng and sophomore midfielder Gabriel De Freitas also made close runs in the final minutes for the Tigers, but to no avail; forcing a first overtime period of golden goal soccer, meaning the first to score wins.

CU only had one shot in the first overtime period, coming from the foot of redshirt freshman forward Kevon Farquharson, but it missed high. After 100 minutes, the score remained tied 1-1.

Only one shot was fired in the second overtime period, but it proved to be the only shot needed.

De Freitas fired from around 12 yards out, but had his shot blocked by Spring Arbor midfielder Marco Bernardini. Playing in the net, Bernardini tried to clear the ball, but the ball ricocheted off his foot past a diving SAU goalkeeper, Miles Keller, for the winning own goal.

Goalkeepers Malachiyev and Keller each had three saves in their 102:19 of play.

"I think we had a good one on our hands today," Preston said. "That being said, it asks every player to give a little more when you go a man down. When you go down two men, you're lucky to get the tie. But when we did go down, the guys found that little extra and they did the running of two men, some of them. So very proud of that."

Preston continued to complement the combined efforts of his team, but said one Tiger stood high above all others in the season opener – Dru Sin.

"That kid ran for 110 minutes today," Preston said. "I'm just so impressed with him and his will. He's a senior, and if that's who we have willing us to win… Look out everyone else, because we're coming."

Campbellsville University men's soccer (1-0) will take a week off from regular season action but will return home Friday, Aug. 30 at Citizen's Bank Field in Finley Stadium to host Trevecca Nazarene University in a scrimmage at 6 p.m. EDT. The next regular season game for the Tigers is Sept. 3 at Tennessee Temple University.