LONGVIEW, Texas -- This is why they play all 90 minutes.
The LeTourneau men's soccer team made an unbelievable comeback after being down 2-0 with just 4:03 remaining, scoring three goals in 3:20 to storm back and complete an epic come-from-behind win 3-2 over St. Thomas Friday night at the Joyce Family Athletic Village.
The first half was very competitive, with both LeTourneau (8-6-1, 4-2-1 SCAC) and St. Thomas (4-7-2, 2-3-1 SCAC) having six shots each in the period.
St. Thomas struck first in the 41st minute off of a sequence in the box that ended with Lucas Briet heading home a goal to give the Celts a 1-0 lead. Joshua Aguirre and Joshua Jaimes combined for the assists on Briet's goal.
Things didn't get any better for the YellowJackets in the second half when Aldo Hernandez knocked in a right-footed screamer off the crossbar and into the net to give St. Thomas a 2-0 lead (72').
Despite being down 2-0, the YellowJackets were out-shooting the Celts 16-11. With 4:03 remaining and a 2-0 deficit, it felt like the game was over.
However, in the 86th minute, pandemonium ensued.
It started with Bridge Mwambukiri dribbling up the right side of the box and crossing a ball inside, only to have it knocked out by St. Thomas keeper Luis Hernandez; however, senior Caleb Nelson was there to knock home his second goal of the season (86') and cut the Celts' lead to 2-1.
The game still felt out of reach for LeTourneau, but Marcos Gonzalez and Zach Parris had other ideas. In the 88th minute, Leandro Ferreira pushed a ball ahead to Gonzalez, who had his shot blocked by Luis Hernandez, but Parris was there to knock it into the open net to tie the score at 2-2. Parris's electric game-tying goal was the first of his career.
All of a sudden, the Celts' lead had disappeared.
In the 90th minute, Mwambukiri made a long cross into the box for Gonzalez, who headed home his second game-winning goal of the season to stun St. Thomas 3-2.
In just three minutes and 20 seconds, the YellowJackets had scored three goals and stormed back to remain unbeaten (6-0) at home in 2026.
Edson Camara Martinez played all 90 minutes in goal for LeTourneau and registered four saves. Luis Hernandez played the full match for St. Thomas and finished with five saves.
UP NEXT
LeTourneau is back home, hosting the Gents on Sunday (12:00 p.m.).
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