Friday, November 13, 2009

BUIES CREEK, N.C. – Mercer used two second-half goals to knock off No. 1 seed Campbell 3-1 on Friday to advance to the Atlantic Sun Men's Soccer Championship Final Sunday at 1:00 p.m.

After falling behind on an early goal from the Camels, fifth-seeded Mercer (7-10-2) scored three unanswered goals to propel the Bears to their first final since 2004 and first for second year head coach Brad Ruzzo.

Mercer’s Ian Cameron, a First-Team All-Atlantic Sun performer broke a 1-1 stalemate in the 72nd minute off a free kick. Cameron’s shot hit Awana but slipped under the goalkeeper and trickled into the net. Arkenson Neckles put the game out of reach in the 80th minute of the match. Neckles fired on net that hit a Campbell defender deflected over the head of Awana in the upper right hand corner of the net to seal the victory for the Bears.

The scoring hit early when Campbell’s Keegan Terry scored in the sixth minute by heading home a corner kick combination from A-Sun Player of the Year Vince Petrasso and Mitchell Cardenas.

Mercer answered less than two minutes later on a strike from Richie Edmondson. The Bears nearly scored on a header by Ryan Young but Campbell keeper Ted Awana deflected the ball out of the goal. Awana could not gain control of the ball allowing Edmonson to tie the match by finding the net after a scramble in front of the goal.

Mercer picked up the win in a fast-paced match to claim its first win against Campbell (8-10-1) since Sept. 30, 2006 (0-3-1). The Bears become the first team seeded fifth or higher advancing to the title game since No. 5 Florida Atlantic in 1999. Like the Bears in 2009, ten years earlier, the Owls defeated the host and No. 1 seed, Jacksonville, to make final. They face the winner of the Stetson-ETSU match at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday from the Eakes Athletic Complex. The match airs live on ASun.TV.

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The Atlantic Sun Conference is an 11-member league committed to Building Winners for Life. The A-Sun stands for achievement with integrity in both the academic and athletic arenas, with a focus on the balance between the two for our student-athletes. Headquartered in Macon, Ga., the A-Sun boasts six of the top eight media markets in the Southeast. The A-Sun includes a blend of the most prestigious and dynamic private and public institutions in the region: Belmont University, Campbell University, East Tennessee State University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Jacksonville University, Kennesaw State University, Lipscomb University, Mercer University, University of North Florida, University of South Carolina Upstate and Stetson University.