PORTALES, N.M. – Two second half short-handed goals propelled Eastern New Mexico men's soccer team to a 2-1 victory over Oklahoma Baptist during a rescheduled match from Saturday afternoon.

Freshman William Sutton was sent off after his second yellow card of the match in the 38^th minute, forcing the Hounds to play a man down the rest of the match. 10 total cards were issued throughout the match, which proved to be a very rough affair between the two squads.

A balanced first half of action began the match-up for the two squads as neither team managed a substantial offensive attack. Things began to get heated between the two teams near the end of the opening half, resulting in multiple cards and the ejection of Sutton.

That controversial decision from the referees seemed to light a spark under head coach Jon Fridal's squad. The Hounds came out much more aggressive in the second half and relied on an increased focus on possession in the midfield to create scoring chances.

The first chance came in the 66^th minute in which sophomore Gabriel Peres took advantage of the opposing keeper being out of position to put home his second goal of the season. That lead would last less than 10 minutes however, as the Bison answered with a deep strike that narrowly found the top of the net at the 77^th minute.

The frantic pace for each team continued as the physical play that began in the first half continued into the late stages of the match. Sophomore Lucas Vaz battled for possession of the ball and put away a beautiful finish past the outstretched arms of the Bison keeper to score what would prove to be the deciding goal in the 80^th minute.

The Hounds then survived a furious rally from the Bison that saw them generate just two shots in the final 10 minutes of the game despite having the man advantage. Oklahoma Baptist managed to outshoot the Hounds by a total of 11-to-8, but were unable to truly take advantage of the man advantage by creating obvious scoring chances.

Vaz led the Hounds with three shots while Peres and freshman Aderi Arthur-Dede each totaled two. Both goals for the Hounds were unassisted while keeper Logan Miears totaled four saves in his season debut in goal.

Eastern New Mexico will now hit the road for two matches scheduled for #21 Colorado Mesa on Sept. 6 and Fort Lewis on Sept. 8. Those games are scheduled for a 5:30 p.m. and a 1 p.m. start.