GLENSIDE, Pa. – The Arcadia men's soccer team couldn't hold on to a 2-1 halftime lead, then narrowly missed a game-tying chance late in a 3-2 loss at Scranton on Friday evening.
 
Harun Abdullahi needed just 1:03 to record the Knights' first goal of the season as he took the ball away from a defender deep in the Scranton zone and beat the keeper 1-on-1 for a 1-0 lead.
 
The Royals, winners of two of the last three Landmark Conference titles, knotted the game at 1-1 in the 18th minute on a Riley Smith goal, but Ryan Hammer put the Knights back on top (2-1) with his first goal of the young season in the 35th minute. Like Abdullahi, Hammer picked the pocket of a Scranton defender before finding the back of the net.
 
The second half was scoreless for nearly 30 minutes before the Royals tied the game on Michael Castaldi's tap-in goal in the 73rd minute, and Patrick Pinner headed home the game-winning goal off a corner at the 86:10 mark.
 
Arcadia had a golden chance late in the contest when Duncan O'Connor got free in the box for a header, but his effort banged off the post with just over two minutes to play.
 
IN GOAL: Jake Varrato made six saves in goal for the Knights and played all 90:00. His counterpart, Blake Hammert, also played all 90:00 and made two saves for the Royals.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS: The Royals took 14 shots to 10 for Arcadia, while boasting a 9-4 advantge in shots on goal … Scranton also had a 9-4 advantage in corner kicks, including 4-1 in the decisive second half … fouls were relatively even in the contest, as AU committed 14 to 12 for Scranton, but the Knights were booked three times in the match, to just one yellow card for the Royals.
 
UP NEXT: Arcadia is back on the pitch on Saturday when it plays at King's beginning at 2 p.m.