Wofford 4, Liberty 1
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Junior defender Forrest Lasso scored twice on two headers as the Wofford men’s soccer team defeated Liberty 4-1 Wednesday afternoon. He scored the second and final goals of the match as he helped lead the Terriers to their first win of the season.
With the win, Wofford improved to 1-3-1 on the season, as Liberty fell to 2-1-0 overall.
In the first half, Wofford had the first opportunity to score when sophomore midfielder Nestor Jaramillo had a shot from outside the 18-yard box saved by Liberty goalkeeper Scott Sutarik.
In the 20th minute, the Flames struck first with a goal by forward Sachem Wilson off a pass from midfielder Juan Nino to give them a 1-0 lead. The goal was Wilson’s third of the season.
Wofford dominated the half, outshooting the Flames 8-1.
The Terriers responded quickly in the 24th minute, when sophomore midfielder Connor Davis scored his third goal of the season on a header off of Jaramillo’s corner kick, knotting up the score at 1-1. Wofford put on immense pressure at the end of the half and it paid off. Lasso scored the first of his two headers off a corner kick from junior midfielder Carlos Dominguez Gonzalez in the 43rd minute to give the Terriers a 2-1 halftime lead. It was Lasso’s first goal of the season.
In the second half, Wofford would extend its lead in the 63rd minute as Jaramillo scored a goal unassisted to make the score 3-1. He dribbled a couple of Liberty defenders, finding space at the left corner of the 6-yard box, and fired home his first goal of the season.
The Flames began to put on pressure, outshooting the Terriers 8-6 in the half.
Wofford would score the final goal of the match in the 70th minute when Lasso scored his second goal of the game on a header in the 6-yard box off senior defender Billy Padula’s long throw-in.
For the match, the Terriers outshot the Flames 14-9, and won the corner battle 10-2.
In net for Wofford, freshman goalkeeper Joe Wichmann earned his first career victory in his second career start, improving to 1-0-1 on the season. He faced nine Liberty shots and made two saves.
For the Flames, Sutarik fell to his first loss of the season. He played in goal for the first half, facing eight Wofford shots and making one save. Redshirt freshman goalkeeper Jeremy Lee made his first appearance of the season in the second half, as he faced six Terrier shots and made one save.
The Wofford men’s soccer team is back in action on Saturday when it hosts Jacksonville University at Snyder Field. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.
Davidson 3, Campbell 2
DAVIDSON, N.C. – For the second straight contest, Davidson rallied from an early deficit as the Wildcats struck three times in the second half to defeat Campbell, 3-2, in nonconference men’s soccer action Wednesday evening at Alumni Stadium.
Ranked 10th in the latest NCSAA/Continental Tire South Region Poll, the Wildcats improve to 3-0-1, while the Camels fall to 1-2-0 on the young season.
Valeriy Sviderskiy, who led the Wildcats with four goals a year ago, scored the game-winner with just under eight minutes to play when he beat his defender down the far sideline, which set up his one-on-one opportunity with Campbell’s goalkeeper Ethan Hall. Ryan Malden assisted on the sophomore’s second career difference-maker.
After threatening with a pair of chances in the 10th minute, Campbell grabbed the early lead at the 17:08 mark when Justin Franz caught the Wildcats’ backup keeper Andrew Kenneson off his line and struck a shot from just shy of midfield. Ricki Gaez provided the assist on his fellow midfielder’s second goal of the season.
Trailing 1-0, John Pace put Davidson on the board just minutes into the second half with a left-footed blast from just outside the 18-yard box.
Not long after Gaez pushed the Camels back in front with a 59th-minute strike, Alec Rotunda evened the score, 2-2, when Christian Fechter headed a ball into Luke Blades, who gathered and played it across for the equalizer.
Campbell held a 16-15 edge in shots, while Kenneson led both keepers with four saves en route to his first collegiate victory in goal.
Davidson returns to the pitch Saturday when it travels to Longwood for a 3 p.m. contest.
High Point 3, No. 15 UNCG 0
GREENSBORO, N.C. – The 15th-ranked UNCG men’s soccer team suffered its first loss of the season Wednesday night as the Spartans dropped a 3-0 decision to visiting High Point at the UNCG Soccer Stadium. The loss drops the Spartans to 3-1-0 on the season despite outshooting the Panthers 15-10.
After the two teams played a scoreless first half, High Point scored the first goal in the 49th minute of action, becoming the first team to score against UNCG this season. The Spartans opened the season playing 318:36 minutes of scoreless soccer before Mamadee Nyepon knocked a header off a cross from Austin Yearwood past redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Stephen Moffitt.
The Spartans came within inches of tying the game back up just 22 second later as they pushed the attack and had one of their best scoring chances of the night. Freshman defender Quin Lema got free down the right-hand side and made a run into the 18-yard box. He was able to get a pass off to junior David Reittinger, but his shot in close quarters went just wide of the goalpost.
UNCG kept the pressure on and used the energy from the 1,098 fans to mount the attack. Sophomore Lukas Zarges found space in the midfield and sent a long ball to forward Justin Jones, whose shot sailed just over the crossbar in the 55th minute of play.
The Spartans came within inches of tying the game in the 71st minute. Senior forward Brian Graham ran onto a long ball in the box and met the pass at the same time as the on-charging goalkeeper. Graham was able to wrestle the ball loose and send it toward the goal, but a High Point defender was able to make a diving save to keep the ball out of the goal.
High Point took a 2-0 lead in the 75th minute as it took advantage of the UNCG all-out pressure and found the back of the net in on the counterattack. Erien Campbell took the ball near the midfield and it was a two-on-two down the field. Campbell used the Nyepon as a decoy and ripped a shot from 15 yards out into the bottom corner past a diving Moffitt.
Nyepon closed out the scoring in the 89th minute with his second goal of the game, scoring form 15 yards out.
Palmer posted four saves in the victory for the Panthers and was helped by the crucial team save to preserve the shutout. Moffitt picked up his first loss of his career and allowed his first three goals of the season.
UNCG returns to action Saturday night as it welcomes in regional foe Coastal Carolina. Game time is set for 7 p.m. at the UNCG Soccer Stadium.