The University of Tampa men’s soccer team lost to Palm Beach Atlantic University in one of the hardest fought battles by this team. Coming in after a loss to Florida Tech, the Spartans were ready for a comeback. Tampa, who was 5-6 going into the game, had the advantage over a struggling 4-7-1 Palm Beach Atlantic team.
The defenses of both sides were strong. Goalkeeper Mike Devore’s big kicks and punts kept Palm Beach Atlantic forwards away from the goal.
The game was scoreless going into the second half. The half started off very quickly for Palm Beach, as the referee awarded them a penalty kick in the forty-seventh minute due to a hard tackle by defender Hank Malouf in the box.
The crowd began to get rowdy as Palm Beach’s Cheyne Roberts was about to take the kick. He put it right down the middle and Devore guessed the wrong way. This early lead would tell the story of the rest of the game.