BABSON PARK, Fla. (August 30, 2018) – In what ended up being the team's first official match of 2018, the Webber International University men's soccer team came from behind to defeat Pensacola Christian College, 2-1, on a wet Warrior Field on Thursday evening.

After a match-tying goal by Baxter Smith in the 34th minute, sophomore MacKinley Burns netted what would prove to be the winning goal in the 78th minute.

Webber (1-0) fell behind 1-0 very early on as Pensacola Christian (0-1) converted on a penalty kick less than three minutes into the action.

The Warriors, however, did not let their early frustrations and foul trouble get to them, and began to put on the pressure with an onslaught of shot attempts. Starting in the 26th minute, Webber fired eight shots within a nine-minute span that resulted with the goal by Smith, with the assist on the cross from Ervin Ikanovic, to get the home team on the board.

At the intermission, Webber held a 14-4 edge in total shot attempts and an 8-1 advantage in shots on goal, but those numbers were more even in the second half as the Eagles attempted to steal one on the road.

After four saves by Webber goalkeeper Thomas Debladis in the first 26 minutes of the second half, the Warriors responded again with a flurry of shots, taking five more attempts in another nine-minute span, and resulting again in a goal, this one by Burns and assisted by Matheus Gomes.

In all, the Warriors outshot the Eagles 23-12 overall and 12-6 in shots on goal as nine different Warriors had at least one shot attempt, and five had multiple attempts. Gomes led the way with six total attempts while Smith had five, three of which were on goal, and Ikanovic had four, all of which were on goal for the junior transfer from Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Webber's other shots on goal came from Leandro Fonteles and of course, Burns.

Debladis, a transfer from Paris, France, finished with five saves on the six shot attempts he faced on goal, with the penalty kick being the lone conversion for PCC.

"After today's match, I confidently feel that our midfield and depth on the bench shows that we have a very good squad, and that our bench can be just as strong as our starting lineup," commented Head Coach Neil Cockburn. "We have strong, starting players all around."

Webber returns to Warrior field on Saturday, September 1, to face Georgia Southwestern State University at 10 a.m., and then the team will play away from its home turf for the first time on Labor Day, Monday, September 3, at 3:30 p.m. against Middle Georgia State University during the SEU Invitational in Lakeland, Florida.