EMORY, Va. – It's over. The Emory & Henry University Men's Soccer Team (1-3) did something Wednesday afternoon it had not done in 49 attempts… win a regular season soccer match. The Wasps picked up their first win under first-year Head Coach Ali Al-Gashamy, controlling every aspect of the game en route to a 2-0 victory over Virginia State University (0-3) inside the Food City Sports Complex.
The Basics
FINAL SCORE – Emory & Henry 2, Virginia State 0
LOCATION – Emory, Virginia
VENUE – Food City Sports Complex
RECORDS – Emory & Henry (1-3, 0-1 SAC); Virginia State (0-3)
How It Happened
- The Wasps held the majority of the ball throughout the first 15 minutes of play, firing a pair of attempts in the direction of the VSU goal, but the game remained scoreless. In the 16th minute freshman defender Milan Ales (Le Cres, FRANCE) worked a short corner with fellow freshman defender Marcos Baez Juarez (Miranda de Azan, SPAIN) to curl a left-footed shot into the corner of the goal to put E&H on top 1-0. The Wasps continued to ask questions of the VSU defense as they recorded 10 shots in the next 25 minutes but the scoreline held. Emory & Henry increased the margin to 2-0 in the 40th minute when junior midfielder Lander Barrio Gonzalez (Otañes, SPAIN) put a rebound from a shot by senior forward Matheus Ulrich Da Silva (Balneario Camboriu, BRAZIL) past the Virginia State keeper to give E&H the two-goal margin at the halftime break.
- The Trojans slowly worked their way into the game in the second half as they recorded their first shots of the contest. The Wasps still maintained the majority of possession and scoring chances, but neither team could find the back of the net as E&H earned the win by a 2-0 final score.
Emory & Henry Individual Leaders
- Ales and Barrio Gonzalez each registered a goal with their lone shots of the afternoon. Freshman forward Samuel Ulrich Da Silva (Balneario Camboriu, BRAZIL) had five shots, two on goal, while the elder Ulrich Da Silva finished with an assist on four attempts. Baez Juarez had an assist on three shots and seven other Wasps had a pop at goal.
- Junior goalkeeper Baptiste Berthozat (Saint-Martin-de-Crau, FRANCE) made one save in goal to earn the win.
Virginia State Individual Leaders
- Jeremiah Mackin led the Trojans with a team-high three attempts, one of which was on frame. Diddier Roches had the other shot for VSU.
- Elijah Fernandez recorded six saves in between the pipes for VSU.
Up Next
- The Wasps step out of conference play on Saturday, September 20 when they host the Panthers of Florida Tech. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. from the Food City Sports Complex.
---E&H---