CHARLOTTE, N.C.— Defensive miscues hurt the Montreat men's soccer team Monday afternoon in Charlotte, N.C. as the Cavaliers lost a 4-2 non-conference contest against the Johnson & Wales University-Charlotte Wildcats. The defeat dropped the Cavs' record to 4-8 overall.
Johnson & Wales (6-3-4) took advantage of a few first-half defensive mistakes by the Cavaliers, starting the scoring as early as the third minute of action. A Montreat giveaway led to a Wildcat corner kick just 2:48 into the contest, and the hosts capitalized via a left-footed volley to seize an early 1-0 edge.
After winning a ball in the midfield nearly 20 minutes in, the hosts sent a long, curling pass forward that bounced over the Cavs' last line of defense and was subsequently tapped in, doubling the Wildcats' advantage in the process. The hosts then again extended their lead late in the period, moving in front by three goals after a Cavalier header inadvertently sent the ball directly into the path of a JWU attacker. Johnson & Wales calmly slotted the mistake home and entered the halftime break with a strong 3-0 lead.
Hugo Rodriguez recorded Montreat's two most dangerous looks in the first half, both coming on free kicks from just outside the 18-yard box. In the eighth minute, Rodriguez nearly tucked a curling strike into the upper right corner of the JWU goal. Later, in the 26
th minute, the Madrid, Spain native experienced a similar outcome when going for the upper left corner.
JWU entered intermission with a 7-3 edge in shots taken, and it was responsible for all five shots on goal through 45 minutes of play. The hosts also maintained a slim 3-2 advantage on corner kicks in the initial frame.
Not content with a three-goal lead, Johnson & Wales started the second half like it did the first. A long ball out of the back led to another misplayed defensive header, which aided Johnson & Wales as it tacked on a fourth goal less than 90 seconds into the period.
Needing a flurry of goals in quick succession, the Cavaliers sent numbers forward each chance they got. Eventually, that additional second-half pressure started to pay dividends.
Montreat's first shot on target also proved to be its initial score of the afternoon. Ten minutes into the frame,
Seth Brady managed to track down a ball near the right corner flag and slide a pass to Rodriguez. Using his vision, Rodriguez guided a cross toward the far post where
Ricardo Madan was making a run. Then, stepping in front of a defender, Madan poked the ball past the goalkeeper and trimmed the Cavalier deficit to 4-1.
Ethan Kerns pulled another goal back for the Cavaliers with 19:57 remaining in regulation. Kerns initially played a ball to
Raphael Akendo in the attacking third. After dribbling through traffic in the 18-yard box, Akendo dragged a pass back to Kerns near the top of the half-circle. Kerns stepped into the pass and blasted a left-footed strike into the right side of the net, leaving the keeper no chance at a save; however, Kerns' first-career goal proved to be Montreat's last of the day as the Wildcats' goalie made three late saves to preserve JWU's 4-2 advantage.
"Today was a very disappointing performance in the first half," said head coach
Michael Bruce. "I was glad to see the guys that played in the second half fight and show more positivity. We need more of that to finish out the season."
Thanks to a 9-3 edge in the second half, the Cavaliers attempted more shots on Monday afternoon than the Wildcats (12-10). Montreat also maintained a slim 7-6 shots on goal advantage, while JWU took four corner kicks compared to the Cavs' two.
The Montreat men's soccer team resumes conference play this Wednesday with a home matchup versus Bluefield University. Kickoff is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. in Black Mountain, N.C.
