BUENA VISTA, Va. – The Southern Virginia University Men's Soccer team got their season underway this afternoon against a talented Averett University team.

The first half was controlled by the Cougars who had 59% of the possession and 12 total shots, including 2 on target.

The Knights relied on their returners on the back line to lead the defense in the first half. Josh Dubinsky and Sam Melo provided leadership for the back end with the Cougars having the ball in their offensive third for much of the first half. Dallin Chappell was solid in goal, turning away both shots on target in the first half.

After the halftime break, the Knights looked much more confident on the ball, especially playing out of the back and through the midfield.

Southern Virginia struck first off of a Tanner Gonder goal in the 75^th minute. The ball played in behind was deflected by a Cougar defender and found its way to the feet of Gonder who curled a ball past the goalkeeper and found the bottom left corner.

Averett fought back, evening the score line just under ten minutes after the Knights took the lead. The Cougars goal, scored by Moises Garcia in the 84^th minute, hit off the right post and ended up in the back of the net.

Both teams had half chances at the end of the game but neither were able to convert and the game ended 1-1.

The Knights will head to Ashland, Virginia this Saturday, September 3, where they will take on the Yellow Jackets of Randolph-Macon College with kick-off set for 12:00 pm.