KERRVILLE, Texas — Somebody forgot to tell the North American University men's soccer team that the game was supposed to be over. And honestly? Good.
The Stallions walked into Mountaineer Soccer Field Wednesday night and went toe-to-toe with Schreiner University in a match that was physical, tactical, defensive and, for long stretches, just plain old-fashioned Texas soccer.
Schreiner ultimately came away with the 2-1 victory, but this was not another North American match decided by a Stallions collapse in the final seconds. Nope. This time, the Stallions found another gear late.
North American trailed 2-0 with less than five minutes remaining before Adam Palszabo answered in the 86th minute, cutting the deficit to 2-1 and sending the Stallions charging into the final minutes looking for the equalizer. The goal was Palszabo's first of the season and came unassisted.
And suddenly, it was GAME ON.  Schreiner's defense, however, slammed the door.
"Somebody Put a Garage Door in Front of Both Goals"
The official box score says North American finished with three shots and Schreiner with eight. If you watched the match, however, you know those numbers don't tell the whole story.
The second half was a shooting gallery. From the sideline and on the video, the match looked much closer to six shots apiece after halftime than the official numbers suggest. What everybody watching could see was two teams repeatedly pushing toward the opposing penalty area and two defensive units answering the bell.  It felt like there was a giant garage door sitting in front of both goals.
Every time somebody got close, somebody else was there — a center back, a fullback, a wingback, a midfielder dropping into space or a goalkeeper stepping up.
Whatever you want to call them, the back lines were working.  And that deserves some love.
Defensive MVPs Don't Always Show Up in the Box Score  For Schreiner, a major shoutout goes to Layton Norwood, who helped anchor the Mountaineers' defensive effort.
For North American, No. 28 Charlie Wells was once again doing Charlie Wells things — communication, organization, reading the field, leading, getting teammates into position and doing the little things that don't necessarily become a statistic.
And that's the funny thing about soccer.  You can look at a box score and see shots, saves, goals, assists and corners. But the people who understand the beautiful game know there is an entire second box score that never gets printed.
Who won the line? Who communicated? Who stepped into danger first? Who made the play that prevented the shot before the shot ever happened?
That's where guys like Norwood and Wells earn their flowers.  The official statistics may not call them the MVPs.
But the people watching the match?  We saw you.
The Match
The first half was a defensive chess match. Neither team could find the breakthrough, and the two sides went into halftime tied 0-0.Â
North American goalkeeper Lutho Mkaba continued his early-season work between the pipes, while the Stallions' defense worked to keep Schreiner from finding clean opportunities.
The Mountaineers finally broke through in the 76th minute. At 75:42, freshman forward Holden Smith scored his first collegiate goal, with assists from Nicholas Vasquez and Gabe Zagastizabal.
Two minutes later, Schreiner struck again. At 77:19, Zagastizabal scored to make it 2-0, assisted by Cameron Hoschar and Daniel Gutierrez.
Just like that, North American was staring at a two-goal hole.  But here's where I like this group.  They didn't fold.  They went back to work.
At 86:10, Palszabo put the Stallions on the board.  2-1.
Now everybody in the building knew what time it was. North American had momentum, Schreiner had a one-goal lead, and the Stallions had roughly four minutes plus stoppage time to make something happen.
Schreiner's defense survived the push and protected the 2-1 victory.
Coach Smith: "Yoooo... We Are Moving in the Right Direction"
After the match, Head Coach Dane Smith gave one of those Coach Smith reactions that Stallions Nation has come to know.
And if you know Coach Smith, you know that delivery says a LOT.
It's that excited-but-still-processing-what-he-just-watched voice. Almost like a dad looking at his kids saying, "Y'all are getting better... but Y'ALL KNOW you could've done that even better, right?"Â
Coach Smith said the Stallions attacked Schreiner all night and controlled the game, but the next step is simple.  Finish.
That's the part that we have to get done.  Because if North American can combine the attacking pressure it showed Wednesday with the defensive communication and 90-minute commitment it displayed, there is something here.
A lot of something.  I've said it before, and I'll say it again:
This team does not know how good it really is yet.
And honestly?  That's the scary part.
This Wasn't a Stamina Problem
One thing Wednesday's match showed clearly is that North American can play for 90 minutes.
The Stallions didn't run out of gas. They didn't disappear late. They didn't get physically overwhelmed.
If anything, they were still pushing forward when the clock was working against them.
That late surge matters.  We've watched this team deal with late-game heartbreak already this season. Wednesday wasn't that. This time, the Stallions created their best urgency late.
The problem wasn't cardio.  The problem wasn't physical preparedness.  This was a mental cardio issue.  The next level is learning how to maintain that attacking mentality before the scoreboard forces it.
Don't wait until you're down 2-0 to play like the game is yours.  Play like that at 0-0. Play like that at 1-0. Play like that when you're winning.
That's the growth Coach Smith is talking about.
Credit Where Credit Is Due
And while we're handing out flowers, Schreiner deserves theirs too.  The Mountaineers were disciplined. They defended their home field. They survived North American's late push. They finished their opportunities. And when the Stallions turned up the pressure, Schreiner's back line answered.  That's coaching.  That's preparation.  That's school pride.
And credit goes to the Schreiner staff, including Darren Bauer and Bryan Wilson, for putting their team in position to execute.
Wednesday night was exactly what you want from college soccer.  Two Texas universities. Two teams fighting for 90 minutes. Two defensive units refusing to give away anything cheap.
And one final reminder that sometimes the difference between winning and losing is simply:  Who finishes?  Schreiner finished.
North American didn't finish enough.  But the Stallions are getting closer.
And that's why Coach Smith's "Yoooo... we are moving in the right direction" might be more important than it sounds.
Because the record says 1-2.  The tape says something else.  And Stallions Nation?
We know what we're looking at.
Up Next
The Stallions return to action September 19 at 7 p.m. CDT, when North American visits Texas Southmost Community College.
After a physical night in Kerrville, the next chapter comes at home.
90 minutes. Finish the chances. Protect the net.
Hooves Up.
Go Stallions.
