CLINTON, S.C. – Presbyterian College men's soccer defender Newt Turk (Cornelia, Ga.) picked the perfect time to score his first career goal, heading in a corner kick with 12:03 remaining to lift the Blue Hose over visiting UNC Asheville on a rainy Wednesday night, 3-2.
PC improves to 2-1-0 in Big South Conference play on the season and 3-8-0 on the season. UNC Asheville falls to 1-10-0 overall and 0-4-0 in league action.
The Bulldogs tied the match twice after PC goals from Byron Quinatoa (Santo Domingos de los Colorados, Ecuador) and Josh Carter (Anchorage, Alaska), but the Blue Hose prevailed thanks to an Ignacio Monchetti (Montevideo, Uruguay) corner kick that met Turk's head at the top of the goal box for the game-winning score.
Each team posted seven shots on goal as PC goalkeeper Tyler Beadle (Douglasville, Ga.) stopped five shots to earn the victory.
The Bulldogs scored on goals from Rayon Gibbs and Kenneth Lingerfelt.
PC drew first blood on a Quinatoa goal in the ninth minute. Freshman Matt Manter (Irmo, S.C.) split the Bulldog back line to lead an open Quinatoa, who buried a low scorcher to put the Blue Hose ahead early. The score gave the senior his first of the season.
The Blue Hose defense held the Asheville attack at bay for most of the half, as Turk made several stops that included intercepting a dangerous cross and stopping a shot that slipped past a charging Beadle.
The Bulldogs found an equalizer with 45 seconds remaining in the half. Gibbs collected a loose ball and loosed a shot into the left side to send both teams into halftime tied, 1-1.
Carter wasted little time in giving PC back the lead, scoring 2:42 after the sides returned to the field. The sophomore netted his second of the season by deflecting a shot on goal and burying the ensuing rebound from in close to put the Blue Hose ahead, 2-1.
Asheville refused to quit, however, as Lingerfelt pulled the Bulldogs even in the 60th minute. A foul set up a free kick outside the corner of the goal box and Lingerfelt's kick found the opposite side of the net, tying up the proceedings, 2-2.
The score set the stage for Turk's eventual heroics in the 78th minute. The defender played all 90 minutes, as did Pachinno Roberts (Powder Springs, Ga.) and Brett Godwin (Suwanee, Ga.) on a tough defensive unit.
Arlington Shirley (Brandon, Miss.) made his first collegiate start and played 61 minutes on the night.
The Blue Hose continue Big South action by traveling to Radford, Va., for a Saturday evening matchup against the Radford Highlanders. The match is slated to begin at 6 p.m. and will be streamed on the Big South Network presented by State Farm.
