STATESBORO, GA—Eric Dinka's goal in the 80th minute for host Georgia Southern sent his team past visiting NJIT in what soon became a 1-0 final. In turn, the victorious Eagles soared to the top of the Sun Belt Conference men's soccer standings with one regular season conference weekend still to be played.
 
Dinka, a junior who moved into a tie for the Georgia Southern goal-scoring lead (4) despite having made just two starts in his 11 appearances, found the mark at 79:21, driving home a 15-yarder off of a feed from Blake Wilson.
 
The razor's edge loss means NJIT can do no better than to finish tied for first place in the Sun Belt Conference regular season and the Highlanders need to win their regular season finale and get help in the two other four Sun Belt games next weekend.
 
Georgia Southern and NJIT both entered Sunday's tilt with 2-1 Sun Belt Conference records, good for 6 points and a second-place tie behind Hartwick, which had 7 points, but was idle from the conference this week.
 
A draw in Sunday's game would have made for a 3-way tie atop the standings entering the final regular season games. Instead, Georgia Southern vaults into the top spot with 9 points, while NJIT stands still at 6 points, still a point behind Hartwick's 7.
 
After Sunday, Georgia Southern is 7-7 overall and 3-1 in the Sun Belt and NJIT is 7-6-4 overall and 2-2 in the Sun Belt.
 
NJIT's 2-2 Sun Belt Conference record includes 1-0 road losses to the two teams above it in the standings, Georgia Southern and Hartwick. Tied with the Highlanders at 2-2 in the Sun Belt is Georgia State, a team NJIT defeated in the first conference match.
 
The score at Sunday's final whistle Sunday was not reflected on the stat sheet. NJIT doubled the home team in overall shots, 18-9, and even more, 8-3, in shots on target. The Highlanders also had a 7-4 lead in corner kicks.
 
The total shots were even in the opening half at 4 apiece, but NJIT fired 14 attempts in the second half to 5 for the home team. Still, Dinka's shot for the Eagles was the only one to find its way into the net.
 
Georgia Southern junior goalkeeper Jack Falle, the reigning Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week, made 8 saves, including 7 in the second half and a pair in the final 93 seconds. He denied Highlander Stephen McGeever at 88:27 and he made his final big stop on NJIT's Marko Drljic 16 seconds from time to preserve the slim lead and the win. McGeever finished with 3 shots on goal, matching senior teammate Jason Chippy.
 
The clean sheet was Falle's fifth this season overall and his third in Sun Belt Conference action, all wins for the first-place Eagles.
 
NJIT goalkeeper Christian Foust was credited with two saves, one in each half, in his 90 minutes of action.
 
The final regular season weekend in the Sun Belt Conference will feature all six teams in action on Saturday, November 8. First-place Georgia Southern visits in-state rival Georgia State. NJIT will visit Appalachian State (7 pm in Boone, NC) and Hartwick will host Howard.
 
Depending on the combination of results, NJIT could finish anywhere from a first-place tie all the way down to fourth place.
 
And after things are sorted out next Saturday, the whole thing will reset for the Sun Belt Conference championship tournament, the winner earning an automatic berth in the 2014 NCAA Division I College Cup tournament field. Five of the six Sun Belt teams will gather at host Georgia Southern for the championship tournament from November 13 through November 16.