Elon 1, Campbell 0
BUIES CREEK, N.C. – Junior keeper Nathan Dean recorded his third clean sheet of the season as the 21st-ranked Elon men’s soccer team pulled out a 1-0 win at Campbell on Tuesday for its second straight road victory.
It was the 13th career shutout for Dean as the Phoenix improved to 8-1-1 on the year, while Campbell fell to 1-6-1. The Liverpool, England, native recorded six saves for the match while aiding the Phoenix’s back four.
With Dean’s performance, a Matt Wescoe goal at the 49th minute was all that was needed to give the Phoenix the win. Wescoe took a pass on a through ball from Jason Waterman and was able to get a shot past the Camels’ keeper for his third score of the year and second in as many games.
Campbell outshot Elon 16-13 in the match and had a huge advantage in corners, 13-7. Both teams had six shots on frame during the contest.
The Camels earned an early corner kick three minutes into the match and had a chance to get on the scoreboard first, but Ricki Gaez’s strike went high of the goal. CU had two more corner opportunities in the eighth minute, but the Phoenix defense prevented the Camels from getting a shot off.
Elon also had a few scoring chances in the opening stanza but had a number of shots go off frame and others stopped by Camels keeper Ethan Hall. Waterman had a great look at the 13th minute from 11 yards away but was stopped by Hall. Hall also corralled a shot by Wescoe seconds later.
Both teams went into the half scoreless, but Elon held a 7-5 advantage on shots and trailed slightly on corners, 3-4.
After the start of the second period, Elon had a scare as the ball nearly went in off a deflection on a tackle from 20 yards away at the 46th minute. The ball floated toward Dean, who managed to knock it out of play before it went in the net below the top of crossbar.
Campbell continued to frantically chase the equalizer and tested Dean and the Phoenix defense. During a sequence between the 51st to the 56th minutes, Dean made three stops off a pair of CU corners before a Chirag Shah follow went high to end the threat.
Another dangerous moment came at the 84th minute, when the Camels drew a foul against the Phoenix to earn a free kick. Justin Franz’s attempt went high and the Maroon and Gold dodged another bullet.
Elon managed to hang on for the remainder of the match to give head coach Darren Powell his 87th career victory at Elon, seven shy from making him the all-time leader in program wins.
The Phoenix will host Appalachian State on Saturday for its Southern Conference opener. That match is slated for a 7 p.m. kickoff at Rudd Field.
Georgia State 3, UNCG 2 (2OT)
ATLANTA – The UNCG men’s soccer team suffered a heart-breaking 3-2, double-overtime loss at Georgia State on Tuesday night. The Spartans allowed the game-tying goal with 36 seconds left in regulation and allowed the game-winning goal in the 108th minute of play.
UNCG (5-5-0) came out of the gate quickly and jumped out to a 1-0 lead on the Panthers in the 11th minute of play. Sophomore midfielder Noah DeAngelo scored his first goal of the year off a pass from Brian Graham. Graham sent a long pass into the box, where GSU goalkeeper Tyler Prince was unable to handle it and DeAngelo beat him to the ball and poked it into the back of the net.
Georgia State (3-5-1) tied the game in the 32nd minute of play off a corner kick. The Panthers sent the ball into the box, where it was flicked toward goal and Amiri Abraham was able to out-jump redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Stephen Moffitt and head it into the back of the net to make it a 1-1 contest before halftime.
The Spartans retook the lead in the 62nd minute as Graham set up the goal once again. Graham was able to slot a pass through the defense, and senior midfielder Oddur Gudmundsson beat Prince to the ball and deposited it into back of the net for his first goal of the season and a 2-1 lead.
UNCG held the lead down the stretch and was keeping Georgia State at bay until the final minute, when the Panthers were awarded a free kick at the top of the 18-yard box. Stephen McGill stepped up and ripped a low shot to the corner. Moffitt made a diving stab at the shot and was able to get a hand on it but it hit off the goal post and into the back of the net to tie the game at 2-2 with only 36 seconds left in regulation.
Georgia State used the momentum from the game-tying goal and controlled play in the overtime periods, holding a 4-1 edge in shot in extra time. The Panthers got the game-winning goal in the 108th minute of action as McGill scored his second of the game from the top of the 18-yard box after Abraham made a run down the right side.
The Spartans were out-shot by a 22-11 margin in the loss as Moffitt made seven saves, while Prince tallied one save for GSU.
UNCG returns to action Saturday night as it travels to Buies Creek, N.C., for a nonconference contest at Campbell. Game time is set for 7 p.m.