BOXSCORE MINNEAPOLIS -- Ben Henry (FY, Manitowoc, Wis./Lincoln HS) scored a second-half goal for Augsburg College, but the Auggies surrendered three second-half goals in falling 3-1 to visiting Carleton College in a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference men's soccer game on Saturday evening at Edor Nelson Field.

Peter Passalino (FY, Lake Forest, Ill.) scored a three-goal hat trick for Carleton (9-1-3 overall, 3-1-1 MIAC), which outshot Augsburg (8-4-1 overall, 3-2-0 MIAC) by a 12-10 margin in the game.

The contest was an even one throughout the first half, with each team recording three shots in the opening 45 minutes. But early in the second half, the teams combined for three goals in a 3:59 span. Passalino struck first, on a shot from 15 yards out, assisted by Trent Elmore (SO, Bloomington, Ind./Phillips Exeter Academy HS) at the 48:21 mark. Thirty-six seconds later, the Auggies tied the game, as Henry scored his fifth goal of the season, an unassisted tally on a shot from 20 yards out.

"The first half was real close. Carleton had more of the ball, but didn't get anything behind us. We defended well, but didn't do anything in possession. It felt like we were panicked when the ball turned over to us as we just hit it blindly upfield. There wasn't much of a rhythm in the game," said Augsburg coach Greg Holker. "Then the second half starts with a bang. We get caught ball watching on a clearance and they put a ball into Passalino 16 yards out and he showed some great skill in collecting and smashing the first goal. A few seconds later, we get a free kick and Ben Henry knocks it down and digs it out of the mass of bodies to get a shot off. It catches a deflection and sneaks into the goal for 1-1."

But Carleton took the lead for good at the 52:20 mark, as Passalino finished a set of passes from Kurt Heise (SO, Deerfield, Mass.) to Branden McGarrity (SO, Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South HS) with a shot from the center of the box. Passalino completed the scoring at the 86:12 mark, heading home a pass from the left sideline by McGarrity.

"A few minutes later, Carleton hit a big ball into the corner for McGarrity to run onto. It seemed harmless as we had bodies behind the ball, however Brendan played a ball to a pocket where we dropped too deep out of and Passalino finished very well with his left foot from a good distance," Holker said. "On the third goal, McGarrity took a longer entry ball into the corner again, went 1-v-1 with an outside back and served a good ball into the box. One of our center backs lost Passilino for a moment and he headed home to complete the hat trick."

Clayton Lynch (SR, Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Xavier HS) had four saves in goal for Augsburg, while James Neher (SR, Mahtomedi, Minn.) had three saves in goal for Carleton. Lekpea Kordah (SR, Brooklyn Park, Minn./St. Louis Park HS) had three shots for the Auggies.

"I think we were better in possession in the second half. Hussein Abdullahi (SO, Minneapolis, Minn./South HS) made a difference when he entered the game giving us an outlet to get side to side, but we just weren't threatening moving into the final third," Holker said. "We were busy watching the ball in these moments and missed the real danger. Credit to Carleton for the result. They are a good team, and they took advantage of our poor moments well."

Augsburg returns to MIAC play on Wednesday (10/16) at 7:30 p.m., hosting Hamline at Edor Nelson Field.