EDMOND, Okla. – The West Texas A&M men's soccer team couldn't close out a Lone Star Conference victory on the road as a late goal from the Oklahoma Christian Eagles forced a draw on Wednesday in Edmond. The Buffs move to 2-4-4 overall and 0-0-3 in LSC play while the Eagles moved to 5-2-3 overall and 2-0-1 in league play.
 
WT set the pace for the first half in the opening minutes of the game, controlling possession. The Buffs created their first shot less than 10 minutes in as a cross went to the head of Gabriel Nevarez. Nevarez's header froze OC goalkeeper Pepe Hinterschuster but went wide of the post. Following the early chances, the Buffs continued to control possession on the Eagles' side of the field. In the 17^th minute, Dominic Murphy nearly finished Sol Bercu's cross into the box, but couldn't make solid contact as the ball glanced out of play. The Buffs continued to pressure the OC back line when Sharif Mohammed ripped an open shot, forcing Hinterschuster to make a diving save.
 
After the save, the Eagles advanced up the field on a counterattack. As an OC attacker neared the end line, a crossing pass went to an open player, but Luke Southerington's diving interception kept the Eagles from taking the lead. Sensing a shift of momentum, OC surged up the field as a deflection landed a ball inside the 18-yard box. A crossing pass went to the center of the box where the Eagles finished the attack, but an offside flag waved off the go-ahead score. 40 seconds later, OC broke through the back line where an offside call waved off a second goal. Before the half came to a close, the Eagles caught WT on a counter, but solid defending and an errant pass forced the attack to stall. Although the Buffs registered four shots without allowing one to OC, the game remained scoreless entering the midway break.
 
After the second-half kickoff, the Eagles pushed up the field looking to set the tone for the remainder of the game. OC found their first shot of the game 30 seconds into the period, sending the chance over the goal. After controlling the first half, the Buffs broke through in the 54^th minute when Daniel Burton played a ball over the back line. Coming out to cut off the pass, Hinterschuster couldn't control the ball as it went out for a corner. On the restart, Nevarez sent an in-swinging ball to the back post where Yaniv Zion finished the pass into the back of the net. After the goal, the Buffs didn't let off on the attack as pressure forced turnovers in the attacking third. WT nearly doubled its lead in the 62^nd minute when an errant pass went to Quintin Benn-John outside the box. Benn-John passed ahead to Murphy inside the box who floated a shot over Hinterschuster's head. After hitting the crossbar, Hinterschuster gathered the rebound and cleared the ball away.
 
Oklahoma Christian nearly tied the game in the 66^th minute as an overlapping run produced a cross into the center of the box. With multiple Eagles in the area, Isaias Silva ripped a shot which hit the crossbar and bounced out. Southerington came up with a crucial save in the 81^st minute as an open OC player fired a shot, but the Buffs' goalkeeper was up to the test.  The Eagles' pressure over the previous 10 minutes paid off as a bouncing ball fell to the foot of Ethan Nakolo who beat Southerington to tie the game. With the score even, neither team could find a late winner.
 
WT celebrates Homecoming in Canyon with an 11 a.m. game against Sul Ross State.