Halabi Tallies a Hattrick for the Come-back Win
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
St. Francis (IL) (0-1) | 3 | 0 | 3 |
|
Saint Francis (Ind.) (2-1) | 1 | 3 | 4 |
FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The University of Saint Francis (Ind.) men's soccer team recorded their first win under the new leadership of Mamba Chisoni. The Cougars came back from a 2-goal deficit from the Fighting Saints all thanks to the center back from Melbourne, Australia, Sasha Halabi.
The Cougars began the first half on the front foot with a goal coming from Sasha Halabi in the 16th minute to put the Cougs up 1-0. The Fighting Saints answered almost immediately in the 18th minute to tie things up at 1 a piece. The Fighting Saints never took their foot off the gas as they were able to convert their go-ahead goal within a minute of the previously scored one.
The Cougars had no answer for the third goal from the Saints in the 43rd minute where the Cougars back line were caught on their heels in the counter-attack from the Saints. USF (Ind.) trailed by 2 at the half, but cut the deficit down to 1 goal within the first 10 minutes of the second half due to Enrique Subiran pick-pocketing the Saints back-line for an unassisted finish.
The momentum shifted almost immediately after this goal, as the Cougars played with resilience and confidence to fight back and tie the match in the 74th minute. Sasha Halabi recorded his second finish of the night from a set-piece directly from the training ground. Martim Silva's service from the corner was the highlighted assist for the tying goal. In the 81st minute, the Cougars again finished from a set piece & scramble play in the box where Halabi recorded his third goal to tally his first hat trick with USF (Ind.). Luis Miguel Parodi tallied the assist for the winning goal of the match.
The Cougars now sit at 1-1 overall in the 2023 season. USF (Ind.) will be back in action for another non conference match-up on August 30th. The Cougars will play host to Concordia University Ann Arbor (Mich.) Cardinals with a 6pm kick-off at Bishop John M. D'Arcy Stadium.
Cougar fans stay updated with all events and recaps with USF Athletics by visiting saintfranciscougars.com or by downloading the Saint Francis Cougars app.
-USF Athletics-
