Garrison Dale scored two first half goals to lift the Covenant men's soccer team to a crucial road USA South victory over Averett 3-1 on Friday afternoon at the Cougar Den in Danville.
The win keeps alive Covenant's chances of hosting a first round USA South tournament match next Saturday. The Scots (10-5-3, 4-3-1 USA South) are tied for the fourth and final host spot in the current standings with Methodist. Averett drops to 7-8-1 overall and 4-4 in league play.
Dale put Covenant on the board first in the 26th minute with his first goal of the match. The senior received a corner kick from Noah Wiersema and placed the shot into the net giving the Scots a 1-0 edge.
Averett would respond in the 33rd minute as Adil Iich knotted the score at one apiece with his eighth goal of the season, off an assist from Nathan Brown.
In the 43rd minute, Dale converted his second penalty kick of the season that put the Scots ahead for good at 2-1. The two-goal effort by Dale is the second in his career and the first since October 2, 2012 at Maryville.
Hudson Brock added the final tally in the second half as he dribbled through the Averett defense before getting his shot past keeper Martin Erenstedt making it 3-1. Brock is now tied for the team lead with Joel Friesen with six goals on the year.
Shuler Polk made six saves for Covenant as he worked all 90 minutes. Erenstedt recorded five for the host Cougars. Averett held a slight 16-15 edge in shots attempted, but Covenant had an 8-7 edge in shots on target. Wiersema and Dale each took three shots to lead the Scots.
Covenant will return to Scotland Yard on Wednesday night to host USA South foe Piedmont in the final regular season match. The Scots will also honor their four seniors during the night's activities. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. or 20-30 minutes after the women's game against Piedmont concludes.