Box Score HANOVER, Ind. – The no. 3 seed Hanover Panthers defeated the no. 4 seed Manchester Spartans on Wednesday afternoon as part of the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament, 3-2.
 
The Panthers were led on the afternoon by senior Josh Hughes (Lafayette, La.) with a goal and two assists.
 
Manchester struck first as a through ball just three minutes into the contest beat the Panther defense, 1-0.
 
The excitement quickly faded for the Spartans as Hughes navigated the Manchester backline for the game tying blow, 1-1.
 
Junior Luke Eppler (Evansville, Ind.) followed it up with the go-ahead goal in the 11^th minute taking a pass from Hughes that propelled HC in front, 2-1.
 
In the 14^th minute, Eppler looked to push the difference as he got a great look on frame that missed just wide of the net.
 
The first half would see the Panthers fire off 12 shots, with six landing on frame.
 
The second half saw Hanover tack on an insurance goal as senior Ian Waldrop (Louisville, Ky.) took a through ball from Hughes in the 62^nd minute for the final Panther goal of the afternoon, 3-1. Spartans captured one final strike in the 85^th minute before Hanover halted the surge and secured the victory.
 
Hanover wraps up the spring 2021 season at 7-1-1 overall and third overall in the HCAC.