No. 24 Elon 1, No. 9 Wake Forest 0
ELON, N.C. – Behind a six-save performance from junior keeper Nathan Dean, the No. 24 Elon men’s soccer team remained unbeaten in 2013 after the Phoenix upset No. 9 Wake Forest, 1-0, on Tuesday night on its home pitch at Rudd Field.
Senior Daniel Lovitz scored the game-winner in the 46th minute for the Phoenix, who improved to 5-0-1 on the year. Dean earned his 12th career shutout with his best performance of the season as he played every minute between the posts.
The win was the Phoenix’s third straight over the Demon Deacons (3-2) with the last two coming at Rudd Field. It was also the second time that Wake Forest was shut out this season, with the previous clean sheet coming in the Demon Deacons’ season-opening 1-0 loss to Coastal Carolina.
In the opening stanza, the Demon Deacons dominated the ball and outshot the Phoenix, 5-2. The Phoenix did earn a slight edge in corners, 3-2, but neither team could break through on the scoreboard in the first period.
Elon’s biggest test came in the 29th minute of the match, when Demon Deacon forward Sean Okoli attempted a shot within the box before Dean turned him away. The ball found the foot of Luca Gimenez on the rebound, but Dean again made the save.
Lovitz nearly put the Phoenix on the board in the 41st minute, but his bending shot from the left side of the box went wide and the game went into the half knotted at 0-0.
The Maroon and Gold broke through just seconds after the beginning of the second session as Lovitz played a ball from Matt Wescoe and Cauê Da Silva and tucked a shot far inside the right post to give Elon a 1-0 advantage. It was the second goal in as many games for Lovitz and his second game-winner of the year.
Wake Forest continued to put the offensive pressure on the Phoenix back six, but Elon nearly went up 2-0 with three chances in the 77th minute. Lovitz had a 10-yard shot blocked by a Demon Deacon defender that led to a Phoenix corner kick. Wescoe was able to play the ball and nearly put a shot near the top of the post, but the keeper Andrew Harris knocked it out of bounds. On the following corner kick, Jason Waterman’s attempt went high and the score remained 1-0.
With nearly five minutes left in the match, the Demon Deacons earned a free kick for a chance at the equalizer. Gimenez’s shot at the 85th minute nearly went inside the far right post, but Dean was able to make a great diving stop to preserve to score.
Wake Forest outshot Elon overall, 12-6, in the match including a 6-3 edge on goal. The Demon Deacons also held a 6-5 advantage in corners.
No. 23 Elon returns to Rudd Field on Friday to host William & Mary, with kickoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
Duke 3, Davidson 2 (OT)
DAVIDSON, N.C. – Duke’s Brody Huitema struck twice, including in the 100th minute, as the Blue Devils erased a two-goal deficit to end Davidson’s unbeaten streak with a 3-2 overtime win Tuesday evening in front of 2,093 fans at Alumni Stadium.
The setback dropped the Wildcats to 4-1-1 on the season, while the Blue Devils improved to 3-1-2.
Huitema’s game-winner came off Seo-In Kim’s second assist of the contest, a low centering pass that got through the Davidson defense.
After threatening with a pair of chances midway through the opening period, Davidson scored the game’s first goal on a header from Valeriy Sviderskiy. The sophomore’s second goal of season came in the 29th minute, when Max Pragnell played the ball out to Chris Pettiglio, who connected with Sviderskiy on a cross.
Just minutes into the second half, Sviderskiy struck again when he beat the Blue Devil defense down the far side and slid a shot inside the near post for the second multiple-goal game of his brief career.
Not long after Sviderskiy’s third goal in as many contests, Jake Keator just missed putting another strike on the board for the Wildcats, but his blast off a free kick was punched over the frame by Duke keeper Alex Long.
Huitema found the back off the net with a 68th-minute header off a Kim corner kick to cut the deficit back to one, 2-1.
Shortly after Davidson went a man down as a result of a red card, the Blue Devils took advantage and tied the score, 2-2, on Nick Palodichuk’s 87th-minute strike, which was set up by a Zach Mathers’ through ball.
Matt Pacifici finished with a game-high six saves for Davidson, while Long stopped four shots.
On Saturday, the Wildcats will begin a season-long four-game road trip when they head to Wofford for their conference opener at 1 p.m.
No. 13 Clemson 2, UNCG 0
CLEMSON, S.C. – Despite outshooting the 13th-ranked team in the country 13-9, the UNCG men’s soccer team dropped a 2-0 decision to nationally ranked Clemson on Tuesday night at Historic Briggs Field.
The Spartans return to action Saturday night as they begin a three-game homestand welcoming in UNCW to the UNCG Soccer Stadium at 7 p.m.
UNCG held a 13-9 advantage in the loss, including an 8-5 edge in the second half. The Spartans also held a 5-4 edge in corner kicks, including a 4-1 lead in the second 45 minutes.
The Spartans’ had the first prime scoring chance of the game in the 30th minute of play after an initial corner kick attempt. The ball came back out to sophomore Lukas Zarges, who whipped it back into the box. Senior defender Mahdi Ali got his head on the ball and pushed it just wide of the post to keep the game scoreless.
The Spartans kept the pressure on in the 31st minute as senior Oddur Gudmundsson took advantage of a Clemson turnover in the midfield. Gudmundsson carried the ball to the top of the 18-yard box and ripped a shot that Clemson goalkeeper Andrew Tarbell had to make a diving save on to keep the game tied at 0-0.
Clemson, which had been held at bay for much of the first half, was awarded a penalty kick in the 41st minute of action as a UNCG defender was called for a foul inside the 18-yard box. Thomas McNamara stepped forward for the Tigers and converted the penalty kick after a stutter-step approach, giving Clemson a 1-0 lead on his sixth tally of the year.
The Spartans came out of the halftime break and held the run of the play in the early going, posting the first five shots of the second half. Junior David Reittinger had the best chance as he found space 15 yards out and ripped a shot past the Clemson goalkeeper, but Tiger defender Phanuel Kavita was able to make a diving kick save on the goal line to keep the Spartans off the board.
Clemson weathered the UNCG early storm and scored its second goal of the game on its first prime scoring chance of the second half in the 70th minute. Paul Clowes sent a through ball into the 18-yard box, where Manolo Sanchez took one touch to free space before blasting a shot into the side netting past redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Stephen Moffitt for the 2-0 lead.
The Spartans return home for three straight games, beginning Saturday night as they host in-state foe UNCW. Game time is set for 7 p.m. at the UNCG Soccer Stadium.