Both teams started the first half strong, keeping the game in the middle of the field for the first few minutes. Salve scored their first goal 13 minutes into the first half. It was only the sixth ball that RWU sophomore goalkeeper James Lee has let past him in the seven games he has appeared in.

Salve scored again less than 10 minutes later, bringing the score to 2-0. The Hawks stepped up their energy immediately afterwards, keeping Salve from scoring again for the rest of the game.

The Hawks went into the second half strong, stepping up their defense to face their opponents. Junior midfielder Garrett Bolton blocked two shots by Salve and got the ball out of the Hawks’ goal and to the other end of the field, where it stayed for the majority of the rest of the game.

“We got outplayed,” said RWU head coach James Greenslit of the team’s loss. “I was a little bit disappointed at times with our defensive shape and organization.” 

Coach Greenslit remarked that he’d like to make sure the boys are prepared and ready to face different players and different systems in the future.

“We approach each game differently, and this is a different system than we’ve played against all year,” he said.

The Hawks’ next game will be at Gordon College Saturday, Oct. 13.

“Gordon plays a different style and a different system, and we’ll make adjustments based on what the other team has to bring to the table,” said Greenslit.

Greenslit remains enthusiastic about the future of the team for the rest of this season.  

“I’m still very confident in the players that we have and the team that we have. It’s just a matter of making sure we train hard and making sure that two losses don’t turn into three,” he said.