BLACK MOUNTAIN, N.C.— The Montreat men's soccer team opened its 2022 season campaign and home slate on Thursday night against the University of Pikeville Bears in Black Mountain, N.C. Despite holding an edge in several offensive categories, it was the Bears who finished their best chance of the night to steal a 1-0 win at Pulliam Stadium and drop the Cavaliers to 0-1 on the year.
 
Montreat held the upper hand early in Thursday night's contest, firing off four shots in the match's opening 10 minutes. Strikes from Derek Chacon and Ricardo Araujo tested the Pikeville goalkeeper early, but a few crucial saves kept the Cavs off the board.
 
Pikeville (1-0) worked its way into the match after the Cavaliers' early onslaught of pressure, registering their first shot on target in the 26^th minute; however, starting Montreat goalie Marius Braedstrup-Holm was up for the task, snuffing out the danger with the first of his four saves on the night.
 
Araujo continued to push the Cavs forward in the 31^st minute by forcing another Pikeville save via a splendid right-footed strike at the top of the 18-yard box. The Cavaliers outshot the Bears by a 10-4 margin in the initial 45 minutes of action, but without the ball finding its way into the back of the net, both sides entered the break deadlocked at 0-0.
 
In a much more even second half, the Bears matched the Cavaliers with five shots apiece. Aside from Ricardo Madan, who forced a pair of saves with dangerous chances in the 62^nd and 72^nd minutes, neither team managed to place a shot on frame until late in the period.
 
With the Cavs unable to take advantage of some decent looks, the Bears started to make their push, forcing a Braedstrup-Holm save in the 78^th minute. Six minutes later, they found their breakthrough goal.
 
Attacking off a throw-in in its own half, Pikeville surged up the right side of the field toward the attacking third. A low cross from Anthony Aguilar made its way through the penalty box on a trio of hops, and Richard Wohl teed off on the volley, rifling a shot into the net to put the Bears in front by a goal.
 
Montreat tried to surge late and find its equalizer, but the Cavs couldn't muster a shot over the final 6:18, ultimately coming up on the short end of a 1-0 scoreline. The Cavs outshot the Bears, 15-9, and had significantly more set piece opportunities thanks to a 9-2 corner-kick edge, but it was Pikeville who managed to find the netting for the night's lone tally.
 
"It was a tough way to start the season," said head coach Michael Bruce. "I believe we only showed small glimpses of what we are capable of doing. We will be working hard to put together a complete performance and gain momentum before we kick off conference play."
 
The Cavaliers return to action on Saturday with their first road match of the season. Action between Montreat and the Converse University Valkyries begins at 7:00 p.m. in Spartanburg, S.C.