Arkadelphia, Ark.-Ouachita Baptist University spoiled the coaching debut of Matt Torok and the Eagles season-opener when it posted a 3-0 victory Friday in Arkadelphia.
Leading 1-0, the Tigers would change the momentum of the match when it scored with only seconds to go in the first half. Ouachita's Brian Williams netted a clutch goal with less than a minute to play to give the Tigers a 2-0 advantage heading into halftime. Ozarks did create some chances in the first with three shots, but came up empty.
"We never like losing, but I'm not disappointed with our effort," said Torok, who was named the head coach in April. "We started six new faces against an experienced NCAA Division II squad on the road. It's a work in process to figure out who goes where, and chemistry won't develop overnight. The guys need to commit to learning from the mistakes we made tonight and improve on them our next chance out. We had some real bright spots, but we need to continue along the encouraging path we established during preseason."
The Tigers its momentum into the second half and recorded 12 shots. Eventually, the Tigers broke down Ozarks' defense with another goal in the 77th minute to establish a 3-0 lead.
The Eagles tallied two shots in the second half. Ozarks did have four corner kicks in the match, but OBU doubled that amount with eight.
Austin Benner collected eight saves in goal for Ozarks. Travis Leach and Shaun Keane each had a pair of shots on the offensive attack.
The match was considered an exhibition for Ouachita Baptist.
The Eagles will host Williams Baptist College Monday, September 1 at 1:00 p.m.
