HARROGATE, Tenn. — The second half strategy was simple.
 
Helio D'Anna made sure he laid it out as such to his Lincoln Memorial University men's soccer team, who was down 2-0 after 45 minutes, with his straightforward halftime speech.
 
"I honestly told them, 'We have two choices. We can scrape the first goal and it'll become a game," the 16-year head coach said, "or we can focus on the referee and lose our cool and lose our focus. I prefer No. 1, but just tell me.
 
"I'd like to know if I'm going to coach in the second half or if I'm going to just sit there and watch the circus catch on fire. Everybody said, 'Let's play.'"
 
The Railsplitters did just that, blazing back in the last 45 minutes where they scored two goals — one in the 49th and 55th minute — to knot it up before South Atlantic Conference foe Carson-Newman connected on the eventual game-winning goal in the 59th minute for the 3-2 victory.
 
The come-from-behind fight was ignited with just 10 Railsplitters on the field. Just 15 minutes into the match after a C-N corner kick, Rodrigo Aguiar received a red card for too much contact in the box, which resulted in an ejection and a loss of eligibility in the next match played.
 
The Eagles (4-1, 1-1 SAC) took advantage of LMU (2-2-1, 0-1) being down a man as Ashley Kelynack scored a penalty kick in the 29th minute, and then again when Samuel Jenkins headed in a corner kick from Tom Rankin for a 2-0 lead.
 
All tables turned once D'Anna tore into his squad with his halftime speech.
 
Senior Christoph Willemsen was the first to respond, collecting the rebound from an Eagle save in the 49th minute before depositing it into the left corner to inch within a score.
 
"The whole year long, these guys don't quit," D'Anna said. "They make up the difference of being a man down and the circumstances against themselves, but heart. Today, was a little more than heart, it was quality. We were over possessing them even a man down.
 
"In fact, with two men down, for a few minutes, we still had the ball so we got quality. It's not just that. You have to remember, we had injuries today and nobody could tell. I'm proud. No, I don't like losing but I can not, not see the good things either."
 
Victor Peres, who scored the game-winning goal at King University a week ago, was the next to cash in on his head coach's challenge. The senior took a pass from the left side via Matteo Bufalo, finding pay dirt at the 55th-minute mark for this second goal in as many games and the 2-all equalizer.
 
"This kid is one of those guys," said D'Anna, of Peres. "You look at him and he's not tall, not big, not strong, not fast, but he can not, not score. He's got the gift. We are happy to have him back."
 
C-N crashed the Railsplitters' comeback party in the 59th minute when Ben King sent over a long pass to Tobias Solem Karlsen as he scored the go-ahead goal for the 3-2 lead.
 
The two conference foes exchanged 37 fouls combined, where C-N had 17 and LMU was called for 20. The Railsplitters cut down on fouls in the second half, getting just six compared to the Eagles' 11 and eight better than LMU's 14 in the first 45 minutes. LMU out-shot C-N by three, 16-13.
 
LMU, however, had three red cards as Aguiar (15th minute) and Julio Neto (87th minute) were carded on the playing field, while Guilherme Soares was on the sideline. The trio will miss the Railsplitters' 1 p.m. match at Catawba Saturday.
 
"That's the nice thing about this team. They hate losing, hate it," D'Anna said. "Tomorrow they are going to ask for a full practice. I do have to build a little more confidence in critical moments of the game, but I'm confident we will come back and play a great game on Saturday."