After a frustrating setback on Friday at Millsaps, Centre looked for a bounce back on Sunday at Rhodes. The strength and resolve led the Colonels to come away with a point as two late goals saw the day end in a 1-1 draw.
Centre took control from the start and nearly had a quick lead.
Finnegan Deem-Ranzetta had a shot deflected just over a minute in. The follow from
Ethan Cajuste was lofted just over the crossbar and out.
Amit Shahar then had a go in the 10th minute but a diving stop by the Lynx keeper get the game nil-nil.
Jack Robson was the next to try from distance, but, he too, was denied going for the same spot as Shahar. The moment Centre nearly had the lead came in the 39th minute as Deem-Ranzetta launched a shot by the Lynx keeper but off the crossbar and away. The game went scoreless to the half despite Centre carrying a 7-1 advantage in total shots.
Rhodes got its offense more organized in the second half as
Grayson Parish faced tests in the 55th and 57th minutes but was able to turn both away. The Lynx tried Parish's left side both times, only to be denied. The Lynx nearly had the lead in the 69th minute when a shot just inside the box ricocheted off the left post and out. Parish made 2 more stops in the 74th and 76th minutes to keep the game scoreless.
Centre's moment finally came in the 84th minute. A shot from
Jacob Tyler was blocked away, setting up a Colonel corner. Off the set piece, the ball found its way to
Tyler Smith, who buried it home to put Centre on the verge of another dramatic finish. Rhodes amped up its attack, looking for the equalizer and got it with just 90 seconds remaining in the game to level the proceedings at 1, which is where it would end.
Rhodes bounced back with an 11-4 shot edge in the 2nd half to bring the final total to 12 for the Lynx and 11 for the Colonels.
Grayson Parish made 4 stops in total to help the Colonels pick up an important point in league play.
The Colonels will look for that first SAA win next Saturday when they travel to San Antonio, TX to take on Trinity. Kickoff is set for 2:00pm ET.
