The Oglethorpe men's soccer team enjoyed a 17-6 shot advantage Friday evening against the SAA's No. 2 seed, Birmingham-Southern. However, Birmingham-Southern was able to get a 2-0 lead and hold on down the stretch for a 2-1 victory in Conway, Ark., eliminating the Stormy Petrels from the SAA Men's Soccer Tournament in the quarterfinal round. 

The Petrels jumped into gear right away, trying to pull the upset on their opponents, who entered the game with an 11-3-1 record. They fired repeated shots at the Panthers' goal in the first half, 13 in all. They also earned five corner kicks over the course of the stanza. However, Birmingham-Southern goalkeeper Jonas Heidrich stopped all six shots that the Petrels put on goal in the period. Meanwhile, the Panthers fired only three shots for the half, putting two on goal. However, one of them found the back of the net in the 30th minute to give Birmingham-Southern a 1-0 lead headed into the halftime break. The Petrels, unfortunately, had little to show for all their possession and all their chances in the first half.

In the second, the Petrels did not get quite as many opportunities, with Birmingham-Southern holding them to four shots for the period. The Panthers doubled their lead in the 68th minute, putting the Petrels really behind the eight-ball. Oglethorpe was not done yet, however. Junior midfielder Nick Muntean took advantage of a rare mistake by Heidrich, pouncing on a loose ball in the 81st minute and slotting it home for his sixth goal of the season, placing him fourth in the SAA in that category, as well as putting him fourth in points (16). Muntean was named to the SAA All-Tournament team for his efforts.

The Petrels had life and they were able to get a couple of solid opportunities to find an equalizer in the game's final 10 minutes. However, it just wasn't to be, as the Panthers held on for the 2-1 victory and advanced to the semifinals, ending Oglethorpe's season. 

In addition to the overall shot count, Oglethorpe almost doubled the Panthers up in shots on goals, putting nine shots on target to Birmingham-Southern's five. The Petrels took six corner kicks to BSC's two and Heidrich wound up with seven saves on the evening. Muntean led the attack for the Stormy Petrels, firing five shots and putting four on goal. Senior forward Eyal Schechter fired three shots of his own, putting two on goal. 

"It's difficult to lose a game when you outshoot an opponent like we did tonight, especially one that ends your season," said Head Coach Jon Akin. "Unfortunately, their goalkeeper had a fantastic game and we gave one of the best strikers in the league two good chances, both of which he finished. I was proud of the effort our guys gave, and have been all season. We left it all out on the field tonight and that's all you can ask. I feel bad for our seniors, especially."

With the loss, the team ends their season with a 7-11-1 record. They finished seventh in the SAA and will lose four seniors off the squad they took to Conway this weekend. Defender Phillip Rawson will graduate, as will midfielder Aleks Tanjga, and forwards Schechter and Carlos Gaston. The program, which has still won two conference titles over the last four years, will now look to reload for the 2015 season.

"Recruiting starts today," said Akin, "and our goal is to put together the best recruiting class in Division III for 2015."