CLINTON, S.C. (Sep. 23, 2025) - Soccer is a cruel game, and no team knows that better than the 2025 ETSU Buccaneers.
Ryan Suckling scored on a rebound in the 50th minute to put them in front at Presbyterian, but the Blue Hose found a late equalizer for a 1-1 draw on Tuesday night in Clinton. It is ETSU's third consecutive draw, the longest such streak in program history.
In a sleepy first half, the Buccaneers (0-4-3) were on the defending end of most of the best chances. The Blue Hose (3-3-3) got a golden opportunity in the ninth minute when a cross from the left side drifted through to the back post to AJ Acree, but Emil Holmberg read the ball well and parried it down for the defender in front of him to clear.
Five minutes into the second half, Gabriel Betancourt was brought to the ground by Gabe Carvalho inside the box. After initially signaling for play to continue, the referee reviewed the sequence and issued a penalty. Ryan Suckling's initial effort on the spot kick was stopped by Tim Baerwalde, but Suckling pounced on the rebound and buried it for his first goal this season and second of his career, both against Presbyterian.
The goal, as goals often do, invigorated the game. Ulysses Hendriks nearly doubled the lead in the 55th as the trailing player on the break, but his shot was deflected wide of the left post. Presbyterian won a free kick from 20 yards out straight on goal in the 62nd, but Holmberg set his wall just right and funneled Steven Cordova's strike to his right for a routine parry.
The Blue Hose answered in the 75th minute, when bright freshman midfielder Aloni Elfu slipped a pass through two defenders to Iragi Kalala, who floated the ball back across goal to get it past Holmberg and into the back-right corner.
Both teams had a flurry of chances in the final moments. Jaime Carrillo had multiple good looks blocked, including one in the 80th minute similar to his first goal against Radford earlier this season. Acree nearly won it for Presbyterian in the 88th but hit it off the underside of the crossbar. Ingvar Kolbjornsen got a ball into Shewit Worton from 12 yards away in the 89th, but Worton was stopped point-blank by Baerwalde. Acree had another crack at the winner on the ensuing counterattack before Holmberg made an acrobatic save lunging to his left in the final seconds to preserve the draw.
The game ended with a whopping 33 combined shots and Presbyterian holding an 18-15 edge while ETSU led shots on goal 8-6. The teams committed a combined 21 fouls and were called offside seven times as they both took aggressive measures in an effort to solve one another for the winning goal. Holmberg made five saves, the third time this season he has stopped five or more shots. Carrillo led the team with three shots while Suckling and Hendriks led with two shots on goal apiece.
The Bucs host Virginia Tech on Monday at 6:00pm.
For more information on ETSU men's soccer, go to ETSUBucs.com.
