BROOKVILLE, N.Y. (Sept. 20, 2014) - On Saturday, the LIU Post men's soccer team battled back from a 2-1 deficit at halftime to come away with a 3-2 win over East Coast Conference rival St. Thomas Aquinas at Pioneer Soccer Park.
 
Senior forward Eivind Austboe's (Stavanger, Norway) header in the 63rd minute gave the Pioneers (4-2, 1-0 ECC) a lead they never relinquished.
 
LIU Post found itself down after St. Thomas Aquinas' Laurie Child chipped the all over the Kevin LaBarbera's (Miller Place, N.Y.) head and into the net in the ninth minute of action.
 
It wasn't until the 32nd minute that the green and gold were able to break through. Graduate Dale McDonald (Roosevelt, N.Y.) connected on a header off a corner kick sent in by freshman Harry Pearse (Berkshire, London, England) to tie the match at 1-apiece.
 
With five minutes to go before halftime, the Spartans were awarded a penalty kick that Michael Wagner converted to give St. Thomas Aquinas a 2-1 lead going into the break.
 
The Pioneers held a 10-4 edge in shots and an 8-0 advantage in corner kicks through the first 45 minutes.
 
In the second half, LIU Post came out looking to erase the deficit. In the 54th minute, sophomore Johannes Forgaard (Stavanger, Norway) found the back of the net off a McDonald cross to tie the game at 2-2.
 
Less than 10 minutes later, McDonald served another one into the box that Austboe headed just inside the left post for the game-winner.
 
Overall, LIU Post held a 20-5 shot advantage and a 12-3 corner edge. Junior goalkeeper Jesper Malmstrom (Linkopping, Sweden) was subbed in at halftime and made one save for LIU Post. For St. Thomas Aquinas, Nicholas Palumbo made five saves.
 
Head Coach Andreas Lindberg and the Pioneers return to action on Wednesday (Sept. 24), when they take on Molloy in an ECC tilt in Rockville Centre, N.Y. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.