Georgia Southern 5, North Florida 0
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Georgia Southern Men's Soccer put on a clinical finishing exhibition on Saturday night (August 27th) against North Florida in the 2011 season opener, taking a 5-0 rout over the Ospreys. Luigi Clendening and Witt Carlisle both scored two goals and assisted on another in the victory. The win was GSU's first 5-0 win since a 1998 victory over UNC Asheville.
Just five minutes into the match, Luigi Clendening (Augusta, Ga.) put Georgia Southern on top, 1-0, on the Eagle's first shot of the match. The senior won the ball at the top of the box in a scrum and dribbled into space to score the unassisted goal from six yards out.
With nine minutes left in the opening period, Drew Ruggles (Manassas, Va.) nearly put the Eagles up 2-0. He was denied by the post on his initial shot and collected the rebound only to shoot the ball high over the bar on his second effort.
In the 43rd minute, Clendening did extend the lead with his second goal of the night. Witt Carlisle (Alpharetta, Ga.) dished the ball to the Eagle striker at the top of the box. Clendening controlled the ball and shot to the far post, scoring for the ninth time in his career.
At the hour mark, Ethan LaPan (Martinez, Ga.) made the Eagle lead 3-0 with his fifth career goal. The sophomore dribbled around the Osprey defense and poked the ball into the net past the UNF goalkeeper from 18 yards.
Georgia Southern added a fourth goal eight minutes later off the boot of Carlisle. Clendening crossed the ball from the endline to Carlisle at six yards with an open net. Carlisle scored again in the 74th minute with his head to make the scoreline 5-0. Nick Lane (Suwanee, Ga.) lashed a free kick from 40 yards which was headed home by Carlisle.
Bradley Bugg (Athens, Ga.) went all 90 minutes between the pipes for Georgia Southern and recorded the first clean sheet for the Eagles since a home win over Winthrop last season. The Eagle netminder made three saves on 12 UNF shots.
Georgia Southern travels for a pair of games in Rock Hill, S.C. against Winthrop and Gardner-Webb next weekend. The battle of the Eagles is on Friday at 7 p.m. and the weekend comes to a close against Gardner-Webb on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Elon 0, High Point 0 (2 OT)
ELON, N.C. - A record crowd of 3,119 rowdy fans were on hand as the Elon Phoenix and High Point Panthers played to a scoreless draw in the season opener for both men's soccer teams on Saturday night in Rhodes Stadium. The crowd was treated to a fast-paced, competitive soccer match complete with numerous scoring opportunities and several near misses.
"This was a fantastic college soccer game," commented Elon head coach Darren Powell. "The record attendance inspired both teams and our supporters really helped our guys. It was exciting to see and we hope that it continues throughout the season."
Elon controlled much of the first half of action, creating several opportunities that nearly gave the Phoenix the lead. In the 18th minute, sophomore Danny Lovitz found junior transfer Jordan Smith on a cross from the right side of the field. Smith's header from about 15 yards out sailed just high of the goal.
Sophomore Gabe Latigue, who racked up a game-high six shots in the contest, had the Phoenix's best chance of the first period in the 30th minute. His rocket from about 30 yards out ricocheted off the cross bar and was eventually cleared away by the Panther defense.
"We really stuck with our game plan and played quite well throughout the contest," Powell noted. "We created several opportunities but unfortunately we couldn't score. We defended well against a very good, fast-paced college team and program."
The second period was rather quiet until a flurry of Elon shots in the 70th minute. Lovitz served a Phoenix corner into the middle of the box where defender Austen King got a head on it. High Point blocked it away but Latigue was there for the rebound. The Panthers managed to punch that shot away as well and another Latigue follow went wide of the net.
Minutes later, midfielder James Carroll and Latigue connected for a little give-and-go inside the box but Carroll's short shot was batted away by High Point keeper Michael Chesler.
With the final minutes of the half ticking down and a steady rain beginning to fall, Elon staved off the Panther attack to offer the crowd some free soccer. Chesler made all five of his saves in the second period while Phoenix goalie Reed Dillard collected six of his nine stops on the evening in the final 45 minutes of regulation.
High Point had the best chance of the extra sessions with about three minutes remaining in the final overtime. Leon Carby slid a shot to the far post from the right side of the field where Dillard made a diving stop. The ball came loose and High Point's Mamadee Nyepon was there for the follow. His shot went off the post and back into the field of play where Shawn Sloan looked to put away the golden goal. An offside call negated the score and the game ended in a scoreless tie.
Both Elon and High Point recorded 16 shots in the contest and each team was called offsides on three occasions. The Panthers were called for 23 fouls compared to 14 for Elon. Six cards were issued, including a late red card to High Point with under two minutes remaining in the game.
"Our task now is to prepare for another strong program from the Big South in Coastal Carolina," said Powell.
Elon will head to the VCU Tournament next weekend where the Phoenix will take on the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers on Friday, September 2 at 5 p.m.
Radford 1, Appalachian State 0 (OT)
Boone, N.C. - In its season opener, Appalachian men's soccer played 90 scoreless minutes against Radford, but in the first minute of overtime, the Highlanders triumphed, 1-0 over the Mountaineers on Saturday at ASU Stadium. After both teams' first game, Appalachian stands at 0-1-0, while Radford starts 1-0-0.
The Mountaineers maintained offensive pressure throughout the match and penetrated Radford's defense repeatedly. Sean Dreybus (Newport News, Va. / Warwick) contributed three shots and a handful of feeds into the box, but his efforts were broken up by RU keeper Ryan Taylor, who had four saves on the day.
After two periods without a goal, the Highlanders acted quickly in overtime. Chel Ho Kim Par fed Luis Grande at the top of the penalty area, and Grande was able to sneak his sudden-victory goal into the bottom left corner in the first minute of the extra stanza.
In net for ASU, Collin Taylor (Morganton, N.C. / Freedom) made three athletic saves on the day.
Appalachian returns to its home pitch on Thursday, Sept. 1 at 7 p.m. The match is scheduled to be available for online viewing. Check out GoASU TV for more webcast information.