NASHVILLE — On Tuesday night at Freed-Hardeman, Trevecca Nazarene University's men's soccer team got a hat trick from Chris Douglas in his return to the lineup after he missed two matches to appear in the CONCACAF Nations League. On Saturday, It was teammate Daniel Shiel's turn to shine.
Shiel tallied his first hat trick as a Trojan, and Trevecca (8-1-2, 3-1-2 GSC) moved to within a single victory of the program's NCAA-era wins record of nine - set in their first year in the NCAA in 2012 - with a 3-1 win over the Delta State University Statesmen (2-7-1, 0-5-0 GSC).
With four matches to play in the Gulf South Conference schedule, the win vaults Trevecca into third in the GSC, two points behind Alabama-Huntsville, and five points back of Auburn-Montgomery. The Trojans and Chargers drew earlier this season, while the Warhawks and Trojans will battle on October 17 in Montgomery, Alabama.
THE SERIES
The Trojans' win moves them to 2-0-1 all-time against DSU. All three matches have come since the Trojans joined the GSC in 2024, and it marked their first win at home over the Statesmen.
THE MATCH
Trevecca controlled play territorially early on, and in the 19th minute, that paid off when a breakaway for Connor Woulfe led to a conference between the officials. The center official conferred with his assistant after a collision in the box, and the Trojans were awarded a penalty. Daniel Shiel stepped up and converted the opportunity past the finger tips of the diving goalkeeper Daniel Santema and the Trojans took a 1-0 lead. The successful penalty was the Trojans' 17th consecutive try from the spot.
The Trojans continued to apply pressure, and less than three minutes after Shiel broke the seal, the junior from Newcastle, Northern Ireland struck again. A quick throw-in from the Trojans along the right wing side went to Chris Douglas, who sent a pass into Shiel who put a shot in off the left hand of Santema to double the Trevecca advantage.
In the 33rd minute, the Statesmen earned a penalty when Trevecca goalkeeper Hunter Walker was whistled for a foul in the box. Callum Black stepped up for DSU and he put it into the net as Walker guessed left, and the shot went right to pull DSU within a single goal at 2-1.
The score remained unchanged into the second half, and in the 79th minute, Shiel capped off the hat trick. Haden Brown took a free kick for Trevecca after DSU's Tazjean Bird was sent off, and Shiel crashed into the middle of the area, rose above the crowd, and headed home the goal to put Trevecca up 3-1.
Trevecca finished the match with a 22-8 edge in shots, and a 12-6 advantage in shots on goal,
GOALKEEPERS:
Trevecca - Hunter Walker (W; 8-1-2) - 90 Minutes Played, 1 GA, 5 SV
Delta State - Daniel Santema (L; 2-6-1) - 90 Minutes Played, 3 GA, 9 SV
SCORING:
32:46 - DSU: Callum Black (1, PK)
UP NEXT
Trevecca will head back down to southwest Tennessee on Wednesday evening when they will battle the Union University Bulldogs (4-5-1, 2-2-1 GSC). The match is slated to kick off at 7:30 p.m.
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