Coker Falls to Lees-McRae 2-0 in Final; Mergena, Fondin and Sweeney Named All-Tournament

BANNER ELK, N.C. - The Coker men's soccer team was unable to pick up their second Conference Carolinas Tournament Championship in as many years, as the Cobras fell to the Bobcats of Lees-McRae 2-0 on Sunday afternoon in the final match of the 2010 men's soccer tournament.

The Cobras end their 2010 season with a record of 7-7-5 overall and 3-4-2 in conference play.

It was an evenly matched game with the Bobcats holding a slight advantage in shots over the Cobras 16-11 and the Cobras holding the advantage on corner kicks 5-3.

Unfortunately for Coker, Lees-McRae found the back of the net twice. The first was off a free kick by Lee Squires in the 33rd minute of play. The score remained 1-0 into the second half, but the Bobcats put home an insurance goal in the 55th minute. This time it was James Galvani scoring the goal with an assist from Squires.

Noah Lascell (Myrtle Beach, S.C.) led the Cobras offensive attack with three shots on goal, while Lees-McRae's Thomas Rusling earned the shutout in the net with six saves. James Sweeney (Huntingtown, Md.) had two saves for the Cobras.

Coker's Marc Mergena (Port-au-Prince, Haiti) Rommel Fondin (Palm Bay, Fla.) and Sweeney each earned All-Tournament honors.

Coker will now take a break for the holidays before beginning their off-season workouts in the spring semester in hopes of returning to the Conference Carolinas Tournament Championship for a third straight year.

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