Men's Soccer completes ninth European trip undefeated with 1-0-2 record against strong competition

The Ohio Northern men's soccer team completed its ninth European trip with an undefeated 1-0-2 record with three matches in three days in the Athens area of Greece under seventh-year head coach Chris Matejka on Sunday morning.

On Friday evening, sophomore Landon Miller (Dayton/Centerville) scored in the 73rd minute to give the Polar Bears a 1-0 victory over Keravnos Kerateas at the Kalyvia Thoriko Municipal Football field in Kalyvia Thoriko, Greece.

Kerateas is a fourth division club in Greece's soccer organization.

Northern then played another fourth division opponent, Sourmena, on Saturday evening and came away with a 1-1 draw in Ellimiko, Greece.

Sophomore Johnny Roussakis (New Lenox, Ill./Lincoln-Way Central) scored in the 30th minute off a free kick from senior Gage Foster (Mason) to give Northern a 1-0 lead, Sourmena rallied with a goal in the 53rd minute of the 80-minute friendly to salvage the tie.

On Sunday morning, the Polar Bears faced their toughest competition on the trip with a match at the Panathinaikos FC academy squad at the Panathinaikos Training Stadium in Koropi, Greece.

Junior Bryce Stone (Park City, Utah) scored on a header off a corner from senior Alex Shaffer (Galena/St. Francis DeSales) in the 54th minute to put ONU on top 1-0.

Panathinaikos kept battling and got the equalizer in the 84th minute.

The opponent was comprised of the top players in the developmental unit of one of Greece's top-level professional clubs.

After the match, Panathinaikos star center back Erik Palmer Brown made a surprise visit with the team. Palmer-Brown was born in nearby Napoleon, Ohio, and played in the Europa League match between Panathinaikos and Shakhtar on Ukraine on Thursday and the Greek Olympic Stadium with the Polar Bears attended.

ONU will conclude its 10-day trip with a trip to nearby Hydra Island on Monday before returning to campus on Tuesday.