Knights survive battle with Harford CC Fighting Owls

Written by: Drew Bellinger

Essex, Md— Great teams find a way, and the Knights did just that. As they settle for a 1-1 tie last night against the D1 Harford Community College Fighting Owls, they survive the scrappy contest to avoid back to back losses.

Tuesday's match against the rival Fighting Owls was full of energy and passion. The Knights played an outstanding game both offensively and defensively. The defense played cohesively, and the offense did an exceptional job of moving the ball around and creating opportunities based off what the firm defense gave them.

In a game that featured four total cards, the most lethal being handed to Essex. A red card to Leon Blank in the 7^th minute meant the Knights would be a man down for the rest of the high-powered match up. However, the Knights did not blink and would ultimately put together an amazing performance.

The first half did not go as planned for the Knights. Fortunately, it's not about how you start, it's how you respond and finish the match. The Fighting Owls created a bunch of scoring opportunities early, firing off seven shots at goal-keeper Colton Bagnall-Drought. None would find the back of the net, three would find Bagnall-Droughts sure hands.

The second half proved that the Knights had created a solid plan moving forward despite conceding a goal right out of the gates of half time that would put them down 1-0 to the Fighting Owls in the 58^th minute. They played much better overall having had time to prepare for the disadvantage. In the 71^st minute the Knights would tie it up after a beautiful cross from Cameron Neighoff found sophomore defensive back Luke Wise for a header that found the back of the net.

I had a chance to speak with Wise after the match and he had the following to say, "It's definitely a big win to come back a man down. Scoring that goal meant everything for us, keeping us motivated for next weeks' game  and the week after that. This is a great stepping-stone for us, our goal is nationals."

In what was a true test for the Knights, they truly held their own against a great D1 rival opponent despite being a man down for the vast majority of the game. The Knights will travel to Westminster, Md where they will take on the 0-10 Carroll Community College Lynx's. This will be a great opportunity for some of the younger players to get action.