ANDERSON, S.C. - A balanced offensive attack and a stingy defense lifted the Anderson men's soccer team past rival Erskine, 3-1, in non-conference action Wednesday afternoon at Trojan Stadium.

Anderson (5-4-1) opened its four-match homestand on a wet turf in a steady rain by winning their second contest in its last three outings, while snapping Erskine's three-match win streak, with the Flying Fleet falling to 5-3 on the season.

The Trojans improved to 4-1 at home and have not dropped a contest to Erskine since 2001, posting a 6-0-3 record against their fiercest local rival in the nine years since that setback in Due West, S.C.

Anderson pressured on the offensive end early, with sophomore Clement Samson notching the first shot of the contest at the 2:39 mark, then posting two more attempts in the seventh minute of action, with Erskine goalkeeper Roberto de la Vina collecting a save on the third attempt by making a diving stop to his right.

Each team nearly scored early in the opening half, with the Flying Fleet putting the ball in the back of the net in the 10th minute, but it was nullified by an offsides call. Five minutes later, Samson found the back of the net for AU, but it too was waved off.

The Fleet's Andy Castano nearly gave the visitors the first score of the contest, but his attempt at the 18:47 mark bounced off the crossbar and it was AU that took the lead when senior Zach Denson found Samson and the 5-10 forward netted the first goal of the afternoon in the 28th minute. The score marked Samson's fifth of the season.

Just more than two minutes later, Anderson junior Lasse Sohrweide knocked home a left-footed attempt past de la Vina for his ninth career game-winning goal that gave AU a 2-1 advantage.

The foul-plagued contest saw a combined 40 whistles on the two teams and following a foul on the Fleet, senior midfielder Adrien Moufflet gave the Trojans some breathing room when his direct kick from 25 yards out settled in the net at 34:08.
The teams went to intermission with AU holding the 3-0 lead, but Erskine's Jonathan Rutter scored for the Flying Fleet when his corner kick was mishandled and found its way into the Trojans' goal in the 49th minute.

The defense took over from there, with the two squads combining for eight shots over the remaining 41 minutes of action.

The Trojans held a 15-7 advantage in shots, including a decisive 9-2 edge in shots on goal, with AU also recording four corner kicks and EC posting two on the afternoon. Anderson's Samson notched a game-high four shots in the contest, with Sohrweide recording three.

Erskine's Castano, Matt Sluga and Cade Weatherly each posted two shots.

Anderson continues the homestand when South Atlantic Conference opponent Catawba visits Trojan Stadium on Saturday for a 3 p.m. kick-off.