SMC Men's Soccer Loses on Senior Day, 2-1

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – For 66 minutes, the Spartanburg Methodist College men's soccer team and visiting Carolina (N.C.) were scoreless. The visiting Bruins broke into the scoring ledger twice within a two-minute window en route to a 2-1 win to spoil the first senior day in the athletic program history at SMC.

Prior to the game, the Pioneers recognized Jose Pacheco, who's left his mark with significant contributions on and off the pitch.

The Bruins, who are ranked No. 3 in the last NCCAA poll, got a breakaway as Carlos Ramirez took the ball down the pitch from Alexander Tweedle before firing a shot to the top right corner for the goal in the 66^th minute. Then, Carolina added to its lead when Karell Buitendijk scored on a penalty kick in the 67^th minute.

Despite being down 2-0, the fans at the Nash Soccer Field saw a resilient SMC squad who continued to attack. The Pioneers got a goal when Brandon Porras in front of the box found Sebastian Puyo for his fourth goal of the season. For Porras, it is his fourth assist on the season to give him a team-best 16 points (six goals, four assists) on the season.

In the contest, SMC goalkeeper Francesco Molinar had another strong game between the posts. Molinar had seven saves in the contest, including a pair just before halftime that kept the game scoreless. It is the fifth time on the season that he has had at least seven saves.

Next, the home slate for the 2024 season will wrap up on Thursday when they host Florida College at 3:30 p.m.